It was the best installment of the trilogy, a vicious heavyweight
fight that will be talked about for years to come.
Five knockdowns between them and in the end, Tyson Fury came out victorious in the 11th round as Deontay Wilder, badly beaten and hurt, just couldn’t summon the were-withal for his body to go on.
The fight was just what the heavyweight division needed- an adrenaline shot to the arm. Now fans are talking about other potential matchups not only for the victor but also for the vanquished.
That shows you that the stock of both fighters went up which is indicative of how entertaining that fight was.
THE FIGHT. Wilder started out strong, landing jabs to the body of Fury which proved to be marginally successful in the first round.
In the second, both men managed to land huge right hands, but Wilder was still in control.
Fury made his move in the third as he started finding his mark as Wilder’s activity waned. A huge right hand as Wilder was backed up against the ropes produced the fight’s first knockdown.
In the 4th, Wilder landed a right hand that wobbled Fury and knocked him down. A few seconds later, Fury was down again, seemingly with his knees still shaky. After the fight, it was discovered that Wilder broke his right hand and this was apparently the sequence that produced the fracture.
Fury gathered himself nicely in the 5th after those knockdowns as he started landing with jabs and right hands. Wilder kept things competitive as he landed his fair share of leather but you got the sense that Fury was starting to take over.
That momentum shift climaxed in the 10th as he knocked down
Wilder with a huge right hand. Fury finally finished the job in the 11th as another huge right hand landed while Wilder had his back against the ropes. As he fell, the ref took a look at the bloodied and beaten Wilder and wisely called for the denouement of the fight.
PROGNOSIS. Fury is the best heavyweight in boxing right now, but Oleksander Usyk who is fresh off a scintillating performance a few weeks ago when he upset Anthony Joshua might have something to say about that.
It could be another interesting duel, this time between two boxers with contrasting styles.
Wilder is a heavyweight made for the box-office, flawed but truly entertaining. In my last column, I was hoping for him to go all out and he did. And because he has such huge entertainment value, there will still be an audience for him to fight Joshua.
What a great fight that would be, two powerful behemoths capable of landing a fight- ending punch at any time.
The heavyweight division is alive and well, and that usually bodes well for the sport.
LAST ROUND. It’s on a dear friend from Swindon, England- Darren Hall who turns a strong 50. Cheers, mate!