Ben Davison knows pretty damn well that Deontay Wilder can end every single fight he’s in in just a matter of a second. The British coach was the man who was sitting in Tyson Fury’s corner in the first fight against Deontay Wilder back in 2018.
The initial bout between “The Gypsy King” and “The Bronze Bomber” ended in a controversial draw, even though Fury won 10 of the 12 rounds back then.
Now, almost three years later, Fury is set to fight Wilder for a third and probably final time. Davison, who got replaced by Sugar Hill Steward for the rematch in 2020, has warned his friend that he must be cautious of Wilder’s right hand in all of the 36 minutes.
Before the third fight in Sin City, Davison remembers just how much of a risk it was for his close friend having only just shifted the weight he had gained during his absence from the sport.
“I just remember that, deep down, we all knew that it was very early in Tyson’s comeback,” he told talkSPORT.
“He lost a lot of weight very close to the fight from obviously when he was extremely heavy as part of the comeback.
“He had only had two warm ups, the plan was to have four, but I just knew there was this sense that a big performance was coming.
“He just rose to the occasion, stuck to the plan. The problem was, throughout the fight, we just never really knew what was in Tyson’s tank after losing all that weight.
“The thing we most feared was him slowing down and getting clipped towards the end, which happened in that 12th round.
“But the way he got up and the character and the material that he showed has just gone down in sporting history.”
“Wilder wanted to start that rematch slowly, Tyson knew that, so therefore started fast. I think that if Wilder is starting to look fast, you can’t just step to him without doing it educated and gradual.
“However, I think the element of surprise was massively in Tyson’s favour with the tactics he employed in the last fight for the rematch.
“This time, Wilder will be prepared for that. The only thing I will say is that, seeing Wilder from the training clips, he is very bouncy and on his toes, slipping shots and moving away and that may make it easier from Tyson to push him back.
“However, if he holds his feet, lets his hands go and is willing to punch with Tyson, it is extremely dangerous.
“So I think you have to be prepared for slight adjustments and what the opponent may do as well. And I think that is what is keeping the intrigue in this trilogy fight.”
