WELL, nobody saw that coming. Least of all, Tyson Fury fans who thought he did enough to deserve the verdict.
Last Sunday, reigning and defending WBC champion Deontay Wilder was outboxed and outfought for most of the fight by Fury, but he managed to salvage a draw because the one judge had it 115-111 for him, while the other had it 114-112 for Fury, but the third judge had it dead even at 113-113.
THE FIGHT. Fury started out trying to find his range with his left hand while Wilder was typically the more aggressive one.
However, Fury immediately established control once he started finding a home for his jab. While Wilder was bringing the fight, he wasn’t very effective and Fury—who moves exceptionally well for a man his size, looked to be relaxed and in control.
To be fair, Wilder did connect sparingly and occasionally but these were too few and far between for him to win rounds decisively. All that changed, however, in the ninth when one of those right hands landed and forced Fury to take a knee. Fury, however, recovered well and was fighting on even terms in the 10th and 11th.
In the 12th, Wilder again found a home for his right hand while Fury was trying to duck and followed this up with a monster left hook that knocked down Fury flat on his back.
Many thought that was the end of the fight, as Wilder was known for his violent stoppages, but Fury somehow willed himself to get back up. The fight ended with Fury on his feet and once again, fighting back and even clowning around.
VERDICT. Despite the two knockdowns, I had Fury ahead comfortably by three points. To be fair to Wilder, there were some close rounds that could have gone either way, but I still cannot fathom how one judge had it 115-111 for him, which means that in his scorecard, Wilder would still have won, even if he had not secured those knockdowns.
NEXT. I predicted Fury to win via unanimous decision, despite the fact that I wanted Wilder to eventually get that slugfest with fellow champion Joshua Wilder.
Regardless of the draw verdict, the biggest winner of that fight was Fury. The fact that he fought and soldiered through despite having been dropped twice (the last one in devastating fashion) shows that a focused and determined Fury can be very difficult to beat.
Predictably, we will be getting a rematch, and this is how it should be. Controversies in boxing are best settled through another installment, but this will leave Anthony Joshua and the heavyweight unification fight hanging.