Deontay Wilder was pretty sure he was going to retire in the back to back defeats to Tyson Fury in their WBC heavyweight title fights.
He felt there wasn’t much more he could accomplish that would make a return to the ring worthwhile.
It wasn’t until a statue of “The Bronze Bomber” was unveiled May 25 in his hometown of Tuscaloosa, Alabama that Wilder was truly motivated to come back. The 2008 Olympic bronze medalist realized once he met many people he has inspired at his statue ceremony that he had more to give to this dangerous game.
“I only wanna put in three more years, Ray,” Wilder told Premier Boxing Champions’ Ray Flores, who moderated the virtual press conference. “By the end of 40, we don’t have to be guessing about Deontay Wilder. We don’t have to assume. You hear it from the horse’s mouth now because, you know, a lot of media, they rather be first than being correct, especially when it pertains to me, you know?”.
“But you hear it right here from me. You know, I only wanna give it three more years, about till the end of 40, [before] turning 41. And then I wanna be done with it. I wanna pursue other things that I have set for myself and I wanna enjoy the rest of my life with my children, and build, build, build [on] this generational wealth.”
Most oddsmakers have installed Wilder (42-2-1, 41 KOs) as a 7-1 favorite to beat Helenius (31-3, 20 KOs) in a 12-round fight that’ll headline a FOX Sports Pay-Per-View show at Barclays Center in Brooklyn ($74.99).
