Deontay Wilder reveals bizarre excuse for Joseph Parker defeat
Deontay Wilder has never tended to take his losses particularly well and now he has come out with another excuse in the wake of his loss to Joseph Parker.
Across his long career, fearsome American puncher Wilder has either knocked his opponents out cold or lost by knockout.
The former long-reigning WBC champion stopped the likes of Luis Ortiz – twice – Bermane Stiverne, Robert Helenius, Dominic Breazeale and many others, but came unstuck against Tyson Fury on three occasions.
The pair’s first fight ended in a controversial draw, and then Wilder was knocked out in the two ensuing matches, while Fury is soon to fight for the undisputed championship.
After those fights, Wilder blamed contaminated water, heavy ring walk costumes, tampered gloves, and many other things.
This past December he lost again, this time on points over 12 rounds to the former WBO champion Parker. His third career defeat was very different, as Wilder was going backwards the whole fight, unwilling to engage, and barely able to throw any punches in a bizarrely, uncharacteristically negative, fearful display. Usually the KO king is aggressive and bloodthirsty, once infamously telling reporters he wanted a body on his record.
Speaking to ESNews he has now said he would change nothing about that defeat.
“It was a blessing. It was a boring fight. Nothing really happened. I went right back to training the next day. For me to be out of the ring for almost two years with one round of fighting and give somebody who has been consistently fighting, he really didn’t do nothing, that tells you a lot.
“That’s just the beginning of what I’m capable of doing with less than three weeks of training.”
He then claimed that it was the travel in the run-up to the fight and a long flight that put him at a disadvantage.
“I had to travel two times. That was 20 hours of travelling and those guys were only two or three hours away. I had to go 10 to 12 hours, breaking camp. I’m not complaining, I’m just saying what I had to go through.”
Fans will just see these as more excuses from Wilder, while Parker has moved on and has a huge next fight lined up in March.