Following a lacklustre display and shutout loss to Joseph Parker, Deontay Wilder is a wounded animal on the heavyweight scene. He wants the next generation to know that it makes him dangerous.
The former WBC Champion first tasted defeat against Tyson Fury, twice, before a quick win over Robert Helenius and a period of inactivity in which he considered retirement.
A fight against Parker in Saudi Arabia convinced him against it, but he looked uncharacteristically gun-shy and the loss dashed hopes of a long-awaited showdown with Anthony Joshua.
To his credit, the 38-year-old is stepping straight back in with Zhilei Zhang on June 1 in Saudi Arabia, with a win against the hard-hitting Chinese heavyweight catapulting him back to the top table.
The man behind boxing in the Kingdom, Turki Alalshikh, has already made plans for ‘The Bronze Bomber’ to be involved in the promotion’s first American card in August should he win, pitting him against young Jared Anderson.
In an interview with Sportsbook Review, Wilder responded positively to the matchmaking.
“F–k yes [I’d fight Anderson eight weeks after Zhang], that’s what we’re in it for. I love being active, this is what it’s all about. I am at my best when I’m active.
When I’m inactive I have to rebuild myself up, my skills and all that. But I’ve been staying in the gym, I haven’t had one rest day. I’ve been working Monday through Saturday and it’s been a beautiful thing to have that love back again, to want to train and be eager to train.”
Anderson is 17-0 with 15 KOs and could well be the heir to the US heavyweight throne. Wilder though believes it’s a step too far too soon for the 24-year-old.
“I do think that for [Anderson], it’s way too high of a step for him fighting me. Everybody knows it and he knows it as well.
You have to say these things to convince yourself and to promote yourself and we understand that, but there’s one thing saying it and another doing, and on the night, if everything comes to fruition and I’m not injured from the Zhang fight and it all goes well … it’s going to be a great fight while it lasts.”
Wilder faces Zhang on the Matchroom vs Queensberry 5 vs 5 card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on June 1.
