What do we know about WBC world heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder?
Sunday 14 June 2015 07:42, UK
Deontay Wilder is big, brash, and has made no secrets about his ambitions to become the biggest name in boxing. So what do we need to know about the man who wants to be king of the ring?
The WBC heavyweight world champion insists he can fill the space soon to be left by Floyd Mayweather.
But while the reputation of Wilder's powerful right hand and gift of the gab precede him, what else is there to know about the 29-year-old?
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He won the world title in January
Wilder won the WBC heavyweight title with a 12 round unanimous points decision over Canadian Bermaine Stiverne.
In so doing, he became the first American-born fighter to hold a professional heavyweight title since 2007. His all-American appeal and knack for performing are expected to help bring fans back to the heavyweight division.
He has the WBC belt tattooed on his leg
“It's official - this belt ain't going nowhere…” Wilder posted on Instagram.
The new ink adds to a body of work that Wilder says equates to more than 1000 hours spent in the tattooist’s chair.
He punched Stiverne so hard he bent the metal rods in his surgically-repaired right hand
In the points decision that won him the title from Stiverne, Wilder hit the Canadian with such power that he lost feeling in his own hand.
"Somewhere in the third or the fourth round I realised it because my hand started going numb. I knew what it was, because I had it happen before," Wilder said.
"The first time I did it I knocked him out and I didn't have to go through the entire fight. With this one it felt OK during the fight. It just let me know that through adversity anything is possible if you have the will and the mind to accomplish your goal.”
He has sparred over 50 rounds with Wladimir Klitschko
The Ukrainian, who holds the WBO, IBF, and WBA titles, invited Wilder into his camp as part of his preparations to fight Mariusz Wach in 2012.
Klitschko is a potential future opponent for Wilder, who admits that the veteran fighter knew a few things he didn’t.
"I learned a lot of things from him. Overall it was a great camp. One of the best camps I've ever been in.”
He had a children’s book written about him following his title win
Deontay the future World Champ! is an illustrated children’s novel that encourages healthy living and determination. A father of three, Wilder says he will “probably will write another children's book”.
He dropped out of college to pay for his daughter’s medical expenses
Wilder worked at fast food restaurants and was a delivery driver for a beer company as he fought as an amateur.
“I had to get up at 4.30 or 5am every morning and I had to lift multiple amounts of beer. They probably put 1,000 cases of beer on my truck. I considered that a morning workout."
He opened a gym for school children in Coffeyville, Kansas
"We did it to get the kids off the street and give them something to do. We got with the city and made the high school a gym.
"They were never introduced to boxing. It does our hearts good to see the kids involved in a physical activity and being happy.”
He’s often mistaken for NBA star LeBron James
"All the time,” Wilder said. “I just smile. When they say I look like him, I politely disagree. The only similarity is our big smiles. I politely exit from that situation.''
