Tyson Fury eyes future showdown with Deontay Wilder

Fury claims it would be ‘the biggest fight in world boxing’. Fury defends his WBO International heavyweight title against Christian Hammer on February 28.

European heavyweight champion Tyson Fury has expressed his delight at seeing Deontay Wilder lift the WBC world heavyweight title last weekend and now seeks to dethrone the heavy-handed American later this year.

Wilder outboxed Bermane Stiverne for 12 rounds in Las Vegas on Saturday night and, in doing so, became America’s first world heavyweight champion since 2006. Fury, who boxes Christian Hammer on February 28 at London’s O2 Arena, couldn’t have been happier with how it all worked out.

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Andre Ward: It’s Time To Up The Stakes

I remember a few years back, when the ingenious, six-man tournament conceived by Showtime, aptly titled The Super Six, had been organized and announced; the contracts were newly inked and the six combatants were confirmed. Proven warrior Mikkel Kessler was rightly the favourite going into the tourney, whilst several other, well-known names were guaranteed to be excitingly competitive. Andre Ward, an Olympic gold medallist, was somewhat of an unknown quantity back then; whilst clearly a fundamentally sound boxer, his relative inexperience coupled with a fairly thin resume (at that time), left a few question marks hanging over him.

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Left-Hook Lounge Mailbag: Deontay Wilder, Miguel Cotto, & Saul Alvarez!

Jeff H. (Liberty City, FL): Deontay Wilder served me a huge bowl of ‘crow’. I was really impressed with the way he performed and don’t see too many people walking thru his power the way Stiverne did. How did you rate his performance and what would you like to see next for him?

Vivek W. (ESB): For starters, I’d like to say congratulations to Deontay Wilder and Team Wilder on a job well done. What a way to start the new calendar year of Boxing! What I loved most about this fight was that it put the spotlight on a man who said he was “ready” for the next level, as well as the burden of proof which required him to rise to the occasion. What was perceived as “conventional logic” prior to the first bell was a totally different story once the bout was in the books!

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Deontay Wilder likes his chances against Wladimir Klitschko

(Photo credit: Hoganphotos/Golden Boy Promotions) Newly crowned WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder (33-0, 32 KOs) is only one day removed from his victory over WBC champ Bermane Stiverne (24-2-1, 21 KOs) and already Wilder is targeting IBF/IBO/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko for a unification match that Wilder is hoping will take place later this year after Wladimir gets through with his title defense against his IBF mandatory challenger Bryant Jennings on April 25th.

Deontay, 29, points to his youth, speed, and inside fighting skills as assets that could lead him to victory over the 38-year-old 6’6” Wladimir if the fight goes down this year.

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Deontay Wilder proved everyone wrong, says trainer Jay Deas

(Photo credit: Esther Lin/Showtime) Deontay Wilder (33-0, 32 KOs) was seen as an unproven fighter with a chin problem and with sloppy skills in the minds of many boxing fans going into his fight last Saturday night against WBC heavyweight champion Bermane Stiverne (24-2-1, 21 KOs). However, Wilder proved the critics wrong by showing that he not only had the chin to take some of Stiverne’s best power shots, but he also had the skills to win a 12 round decision to capture the WBC title.

Wilder’s trainer Jay Deas notes that Wilder did a great job of proving the doubters wrong with his performance and he showed that he’s got the skills to win a heavyweight title.

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Deontay Wilder Brings Heavyweight Championship Back To America!

(Photo credit: Esther Lin/Showtime) And the new WBC Heavyweight World Champion…

America finally has its heavyweight world champion as Alabama’s Deontay Wilder dethroned defending champion Bermane Stiverne via unanimous decision (118-109, 119-108, 120-107) Saturday on SHOWTIME® from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Wilder (33-0, 32 KOs), who had never fought past the fourth round and had knocked out all 32 of his professional opponents, boxed brilliantly behind a stellar jab to become the first U.S.-born heavyweight champion in nearly a decade. The towering 6-foot-7 Tuscaloosa native capitalized on his reach advantage, jabbing consistently to set up a powerful straight right.

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Wilder decisions Stiverne; Santa Cruz defeats Ruiz

(Photo credit: Esther Lin/Showtime) Deontay Wilder (33-0, 32 KOs) kept his unbeaten record but he was extended for the first time in his career in having to go the distance to defeat WBC heavyweight champion Bermane Stiverne (24-2-1, 21 KOs) by a 12 round unanimous decision in front of 8,300 boxing fans at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Wilder, 6’7”, hurt Stiverne in the 2nd and 7th rounds with big right hand shots. However, he was unable to finish him off. Wilder was arguably robbed of a knockdown in the 2nd when he staggered Stiverne with a right hand, causing him to stumble and fall.

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Cotto-Canelo fight off, says De La Hoya

The highly anticipated bout between WBC middleweight champion Miguel Cotto and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez won’t be taking place, according to Golden Boy Promotions vice president Oscar De La Hoya. Instead, De La Hoya will be looking to match his fighter Canelo up against possibly middleweight David Lemieux or James Kirkland.

WBA 160 pound champion Gennady Golovkin’s name isn’t being talked about for Canelo.

“Oscar just told me no Cotto-Canelo. ‘The deal is off the table.’ Said Cotto went past 5th deadline last night. #boxing,” Dan Rafael of ESPN.com reported earlier today.

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Don King wants to match Stiverne with Tyson Fury if he gets past Wilder

If WBC heavyweight champion Bermane Stiverne gets past the formidable Deontay Wilder tonight in their fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, Stiverne’s promoter Don King is reportedly interested in matching the 36-year-old Stiverne up with unbeaten heavyweight contender Tyson Fury in a fight that could take place in the UK if Fury accepts the fight.

There are obviously a lot of ifs involved, because it would require not only a win by Stiverne tonight, and he’s no lock to beat Deontay, but it would also require for Fury to choose not to face heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko.

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The Boxcino Championship Tournaments are Back for 2015 on ESPN2

Last year ESPN2 aired the inaugural ‘2014 Boxcino Championship’ tournament for the 135 lb Lightweight and 160 lb Middleweight divisions. In the lightweight finals, Petr Petrov (35-4-2, 17 KO) of Madrid, Spain defeated Fernando Carcamo (17-6, 13 KO’s) of Ciudad Obregon, Mexico by TKO in round 8. In the middleweight finals, Willie Monroe Jr. (19-1, 6 KO) of Rochester, NY defeated then undefeated Brandon Adams (15-1, 10 KO) of Los Angeles, CA via unanimous decision.

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