A former long-reigning world heavyweight champion has set himself one goal after making his ring return last month.
After suffering back-to-back defeats, former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder made his long-awaited return to the ring on June 27, stopping fellow countryman Tyrrell Herndon in the seventh round of their non-title bout in Wichita, Kansas.
Wilder had been outpointed by former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker at the end of 2023, before he was brutally knocked out in the fifth round of his clash with Zhilei ‘Big Bang’ Zhang in June of 2024 prior to facing Herndon.
As he enters what appears to be the final chapter of his rollercoaster professional career, ‘The Bronze Bomber’ has sent a message out to the rest of the heavyweight division.
Speaking in a press conference, Wilder claimed he had ‘nothing to prove to anyone’ before he reveals he has set himself a goal to become unified world heavyweight champion.
“I’m not proving nothing to anyone, not even myself, but when I set goals in life I look to accomplish them. One of the easiest thing to do in life is to give up, is to quit, to put that white flag up and say ‘I surrender’ but I don’t have that in me. I tell people many times I’ll die for what I believe in and that ain’t no lie, so at this moment in time I set a goal to unify the division, I brought it back one time and I will do it again.”
Whilst his next ring appearance is yet to be confirmed, it has been speculated in recent weeks that Wilder could return to the ring once again before the end of the year and finally face two-time unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua next.
