Not too long ago, heavyweight champion Tyson Fury posted his “wish-list” on Twitter, with the big fights he wants, in order, revealed. Well, WBC heavyweight king Deontay Wilder – the fighter who, in the opinion of many, is the third best big man in the sport after Fury and Wladimir Klitschko – has listed the big fights he would like next.
Speaking with Sky Sports, “The Bronze Bomber” said he would like to fight Tyson Fury after his upcoming defence in Russia against Alexander Povetkin (a fight Wilder says he is not “foolish enough” to look past) and then after that, he wants the winner of the upcoming Charles Martin-Anthony Joshua bout.
“At the end of the day I am going for all the belts so I am going to have to go through all of them,” Wilder said when asked if he would like to fight Fury, Joshua-Martin and also David Haye. “And I would love to fight the UK guys – even in the UK. If I have to go through Fury after my Povetkin fight – and I never look past my next fight – to get those belts, I would love to fight him next. If he wins the [Klitschko] rematch, I will get his remaining belts and after that whoever wins out of Charles or Joshua. And maybe at the end of that, maybe it’ll be against David Haye to see if he can still do what he used to do.”
Wilder is certainly ambitious, and if he gets as far as taking on all the big fights he mentioned, and wins them, he will be the main man at the top of the heavyweight pile. Of course, Fury has an almost identical wish-list of fights (barring Haye, a man he cannot stand and says he will never fight and reward with a payday) and he is sure he can win them all. In order for Wilder to fight Fury, in what would really be a massive fight – here in the UK or in the US – Fury must beat Klitschko again and Wilder has to get past Povetkin in Russia. As fans of the heavyweight division know, anything can happen when two big men meet, and both Klitschko and Povetkin have a very good chance of spoiling the plans of the two heavyweight rulers.
Wilder, though, has fought in the UK before, proving a big hit with the fans before, during and after his easy 1st-round destruction of Audley Harrison in Harrison’s final fight. Wilder recently stated how he considers a real world champion to be a fighter who fights all over the planet and that this is what he will become known as. Beginning with the Povetkin defence in Russia, Wilder is keeping his word.
Wilder has a tough job on his hand against the never-stopped Povetkin, but if he can come through it, any of the fights he mentioned – the Fury one especially – would be monstrous. The heavyweight division is alive and kicking again, no doubt.