Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury co-starred in three of the most thrilling heavyweight fights in recent memory.
Fury returned from a three-year lay-off to face long-reigning WBC Champion Wilder back in 2018, being knocked down twice but scoring a draw on the cards that many felt should have been a victory.
‘The Gypsy King’ would make sure not to leave the second fight in the hands of the judges, switching trainers and adopting an aggressive approach that saw him stop the American inside seven rounds. He did the same – though had to fight through the fire himself – in their third contest.
Wilder’s fortunes have gone from bad to worse since, failing to build on a comeback win over Robert Helenius by being beaten soundly by Joseph Parker on points and then knocked out by Zhilei Zhang. Though the results on paper are not ideal, ‘The Bronze Bomber’s gun-shy performances are what has lead to calls for him to retire at 39-years-old.
Speaking on the Pound 4 Pound podcast, ‘The Gypsy King’ had little doubt that his former rival should hang them up.
“Being truthful, I’d like to see poor old Deontay retire from boxing. Obviously he lost the three fights to me. We took a lot of years off of each other’s lives.
“That war that ended in the 11th round by knockout, that takes a lot out your tank and you don’t recover from fights like that. Between me and Wilder in our trilogy there were ten knockdowns. It takes a lot out of a fighter.
“Even when he’s come back and had a couple of fights since against Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang, he’s only a shadow of his former glory. The only thing left of Deontay is his name. And that’s it. So I’d like to see him retire for sure before he does damage to himself.”
Wilder has confirmed he intends to fight on, but a tune-up comeback fight collapsed and he is yet to announce his next move. Many feel that a fight with former UFC superstar and one-time Fury opponent Francis Ngannou could be next.
As for Fury, he has retired himself since the interview aired. Following his second loss to Oleksandr Usyk, the big Brit decided against a lucrative clash against Anthony Joshua in favour of walking away from the sport. Many do believe, however, that he will return.
