Finally! The rematch fight fans have been waiting to see! This Saturday Night Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury meet up in their long awaited, highly anticipated rematch and it is shaping up to be a fight for the ages! This fight is a huge stepping stone in cementing their legacies as top heavyweights of all time. Before we get into this Saturday though, using a brief look back at the 2018 match between these 2 top heavyweights that ended in a split-decision draw, I’ll tell you what I expect to see go down in what is in my opinion the biggest heavyweight showdown in quite some time.
There is no denying how much this fight means to both men. Both fighters feel as though they were robbed in the first fight. But, no one has a better case than Tyson Fury. He boxed masterfully in his laat fight. He picked out his jabs beautifully. He moved in and out, bobbing and weaving with much success in the early rounds. Using that elusiveness and jab he was able to set up his combinations and in my opinion go up on the scorecards even though he ate a couple of huge shots. As a matter of fact, besides the rounds he took knockdowns, I scored all but 1 in favor of Fury. Now don’t get me wrong, Wilder continues to show he has the best one punch power we have seen since Mike Tyson. If Tyson Fury didnt rise up like The Undertaker, we would be having a totally different conversation.
I bring up Fury’s technically sound performance for a very good reason. In interviews lately, Fury has been loud and boisterous as usual but, it is his bold prediction of an early knockout that has me concerned. This leads me to believe that his anger over the outcome of last fight is going to spill over into this one and anger can be very dangerous to the one bearing it. If Fury gets away from everything that has got him here and goes for the knockout right away, we could see quick work made of Fury and Wilder having his hand raised. This can also be a ploy as well. He could be baiting all of us and Wìlder into thinking we are going to see him swing for the fences early yet, he goes back to the fight 1 game plan of picking his spots and making Wilder miss. It would not surprise me coming from the mind of “The Gypsy King”. Also worth noting is how the cut Fury sustained above his eye at the hands of Otto Wallin mere months ago holds up. He needs to make sure he protects that at all costs, and an overly aggressive approach opens up way too many opportunities for Wilder to land big shots potentially opening up that cut.
As for Wilder, he seems to be out for blood even moreso than his usual thirst for it. Wilder believes he did enough in that first fight to have warranted being claimed the victor. He makes a good case as well. He landed big bombs that put Fury down twice, including the 12th round where he landed that signature big right hand down the middle followed by a flushly landed left hook that seemed to put Fury out for good. Fury rose just seconds before “The Bronze Bomber” was claimed victorious yet again by way of knockout. Wilder’s down points were his lack of head movement and ability to avoid Fury’s jab this avoiding the subsequent combinations that followed. Wilder’s unorthodox style however makes it unlikely that any of that will change in the rematch. Wilder is going to be looking for that knockout early and often and if Tyson doesnt avoid that right hand, it will not end well for him.
Prediction- As I stated before, Fury’s emotion and talk of knocking out Wilder early is quite alarming. He seems hellbent on getting his revenge and that’s what makes me lean toward Deontay Wilder on this one. However, I do also think that Fury can make the adjustments necessary along the way if he is getting tagged while throwing his haymakers. I do not think it comes to that though. I truly believe Wilder will put together his best performance and once again knockout the one they put before him. My final verdict is Deontay Wilder by 6th round KO.
However this one plays out and whoever’s hand is raised in the end on Saturday Night, it is sure to be a treat to fight fans around the world. The heavyweight division is making a big comeback and just as interesting and exciting as this fight is, so is the domino effect it has on the rest of the division. Do we see a fight between Anthony Joshua and the winner? Does Andy Ruiz work himself back into the picture? Do Daniel Dubois or Jerell Miller get their shot? Either way we wont have to wait long for those answers as we are only days away from settiling boxing’s biggest case of “Unfinished Business”
To The Rack With Mac 