Former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder brought questionable actions to the table for his first eyeball contact with Tyson Fury since February 2020.
The last time Wilder saw Fury, the pair had just shared seven one-sided rounds at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
For months during the aftermath, Wilder branded Fury a cheat and made several conspiracy theory claims against the man who took his green and gold belt.
WBN speculated that the meeting in Los Angeles could be as explosive as the Lennox Lewis vs. Mike Tyson presser. How wrong we were.
Instead, “The Bronze Bomber” stated two sentences before turning the volume up on his headphones for the entire duration of the event.
“Enough has been said. It’s time to cut [Tyson Fury’s] head off. Come July the 24th – there will be bloodshed. Get your tickets now, and I’ll see you soon,” he muttered.
Fury, to his credit, engaged with the host Chrystina Poncher and was his usual confident and charismatic self.
Fair play to Wilder for taking part in a lengthy head-to-head that lasted over five minutes. However, his actions were dumbfounding to some.
Ex-world title-holder and Floyd Mayweather fighter Ishe Smith, as usual, raised a solid point.
“Sugar Shay” was at a loss to explain just what he witnessed.
DEONTAY WILDER ALLEGATIONS
“If you call someone a cheat. Suppose you say someone tampered with gloves. And if you say your trainer cheated and conspired with the other camp. If you say, your outfit was too heavy. If you say all these things and it so happens the public gets the third fight, you can’t go silent,” pointed out Smith.
“That shows you’re either mentally unstable or that you never believed the [expletive] you were saying.
“You can say I am not here to speak on that I’m getting ready for the third fight and expect a new [blah blah blah]. But the silence speaks volumes.
“Especially from someone so vocal in the past. I don’t know what to make of the silence. Especially how talkative his past has been and the accusations.
“Seems strange, but you do have a job as a fighter to promote, just strange,” he added.
On whether Wilder can overturn the result, Smith agreed with most of those making predictions that the American’s superhuman power remains the equalizer.
“Either way, a puncher’s chance is always a great chance. It’s like having a 100 mph fastball, but nothing to go with it.
“No change up, no curve, no slider. Surely people will get adjusted to that fastball eventually. [Is] Wilder [able to] add the other pitches? – That is the question?”
