Trainer Malik Scott says the Deontay Wilder vs. Anthony Joshua “super fight” remains out there for the two of them despite their recent losses.
Boxing fans still want to see these two former heavyweight champions battle it out, and it might be an even bigger fight than Joshua-Fury.
Obviously, it would be better if Joshua avenges his loss to Oleksandr Usyk next April before looking in the direction of Wilder, but it doesn’t matter.
The fans are still going to want to see Wilder and Joshua battle it out. and it’s going to have drama written all of it.
WBC heavyweight champion Fury (31-0-1, 22 KOs) won’t be defending his title next when he faces either Andy Ruiz Jr. or Robert Helenius in March.
Fury’s promoter Bob Arum says he’ll defend his Ring Magazine title against one of those two fighters.
Wilder vs. Joshua super-fight out there
It would be good if Joshua shows some initiative to put the fight together with Wilder next. Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn might drag his feet and delay putting the Joshua-Wilder fight together because it’s a risky one for AJ.
“I think if we had stuck to the original plan, which you can say was going our way for two or three rounds, I think if Deontay had stayed the course up there, especially before the first knockdown, we would have had much better success,” said trainer Malik Scott to ESNEWS on Deontay Wilder’s recent loss to Fury on October 9th.
“All those fights [Anthony Joshua, Oleksandr Usyk and Fury] are super, super fights, especially him and AJ. That’ll always be a super fight no matter what. Him and Usyk. He has a lot of options.
“I told him the other day, ‘Think about the position you’re in, Bro.’ The position he’s at after a defeat is a position most fighters aren’t even in a position after they win a fight.
“What do I mean by that? I mean that is if Deontay Wilder decides not to do this again, look at what he’s done and look what he’s leaving with. Legacy, high finance and if he wanted to stay, he could become a two-time heavyweight champion of the world.
“Look at those options. Of all time, the trilogy,” said Malik when reminded that Wilder was involved in one of the best fights of all time against Fury in their trilogy match. Uh-huh, me too,” said Malik in agreeing that Wilder deserved a win in the first fight with Tyson.
“He knocked him [Fury] down two times. He has a lot of options, a lot of options. The position he’s in right now, you take Tyson Fury out of it. Deontay, in my opinion, has one of the best positions in boxing right now because if he stays, he can become a two-time heavyweight champion of the world,” said Malik.
Deontay’s trilogy match with Fury will be remembered
“If he leaves, he’s leaving off of the best trilogy by many that ever happened in the sport of boxing,” said Malik.
“He’s in a good position, man. Smart investments, he owns a ton of real estate. Imagine this. Someone living in Alabama, but making Hollywood money.
“Just doing the numbers hypothetically estate-wise on that. It’s just so much in it that he’s winning in this game, man, and how much he’s won. So it’s good.
“I enjoyed it. I felt really comfortable in my position, confident and I hate the most dangerous puncher in the history of the sport. I was his head trainer,” said Malik.
If this is the end of Wilder’s career, he’s going out with a bang having provided the fans a fight that they’ll never forget.
Things could have been different had Wilder followed the game plan that Malik had for him. If Wilder had continued to hit Fury to the body, he might have weakened him at some point and got a stoppage.
A lot of people still feel that Wilder’s fourth round knockdown of Fury should have resulted in him being counted out. On the second knockdown, Fury appeared to be down for 11 seconds. Fans think it’s a long count by the referee.
Wilder has made a lot of money
According to Forbes, Deontay’s net worth is $40 million. That’s a lot of dough. If Wilder chooses to stick around longer, he’ll likely see his net worth move forwards in the $60 million range.
While that’s not close to the money that Floyd Mayweather Jr. has made, but it’s still a ton, especially when you factor in that Deontay lives in Alabama.
He might as well have a fortune of $400 million because he’s hugely rich for that state.
“Like I said, the kind of heart and the kind of spirit that those guys [Wilder and Fury] showed that day, that can’t be taught,” said Scott. “That just has to be something that’s in you.
“It was good. It was a good experience for me. It was life-changing for so many different reasons. It helped me become a better coach, a better person, a better student, a better teacher. It was just good. I enjoyed every bit of it.
“We’ll see what happens next. He’s good, in good spirits,” said Malik when asked how Deontay is doing now. “He’s out here in LA right now. The last time I talked to him was the day before yesterday. He was in good spirits, smiling from ear to ear with his kids and his family.
“He went on one vacation or two vacations so far [since his fight with Fury on October 9th]. He’s planning more vacations. He’s healing and the cast is off, which is good. His mind is in the right place, and he’s resting right now and enjoying life.
“He’s not rushing to get back in the ring. He’s just coming off the three hardest fights of his career against a suitable opponent and he’s just resting, healing, and getting back.
“He’s in good spirits. As I said, he’s smiling from ear to ear. He came with his game and did everything he said he wanted to do and more.
“He surpassed so many people’s imagination and he’s good,” said Malik about Wilder upbeat despite loss.
People jealous of Deontay
Of course, people are jealous of Wilder because he’s rich, and he is one of the best heavyweights on the planet.
“That comes with it, especially when you’re as outspoken as Deontay is and as unapologetic as he is,” said Scott. “When you stand for something and you do this for more than just yourself.
“You got to realize that his traits, a lot of people don’t have his same traits in themselves. So it’s really a misunderstanding. People fear what they can’t understand. They hate what they can’t conqueror. That’s just the theory of man.
“I think about that a lot when I think about the criticism. Not just Deontay gets with people but has a strong character like Deontay. Any entertainment genre, whether it’s sports or anything.
“We laugh about it more than anything, and it doesn’t bother him one bit because like I say, he’s laughing all the way to the bank and back, and his kids and family are set up pretty good. So it’s all good,” said Malik.
Many boxing fans wanted Wilder to lose because they didn’t like seeing him on top for such a long time. Also, Fury’s fans don’t like that knocked him out in the first fight in 2018.
That was the one where the referee gave Fury a count even though he was knocked cold. The fight should have been stopped because Fury was unconscious, but the referee gave him a count.
Some believe that he wouldn’t have done the same thing if his name was Joe Blow. In other words, Fury was given special treatment, but the fight should have been stopped on the spot.
