Deontay Wilder Blames Tyson Fury’s Weight Following KO Loss: “He Came to Lean On Me”

The results are finally in. The rivalry between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder has finally come to an end. ‘The Gypsy King’ made a statement on Saturday night; he defeated the Alabama native by way of knockout in round 11.

Yes, results speak louder than speculations. After this third fight, there cannot possibly be an inch of doubt left in the average fan’s mind any longer. Tyson Fury proved to the world that he indeed was the better man in this trilogy.

But does this take anything away from Deontay Wilder‘s in-ring legacy? Absolutely not.

‘The Bronze Bomber’ showed immense heart in the fight. Many fans and experts thought he could not possibly go beyond his previous performance in 2020; however, he showed significant improvements in his game. Despite multiple knockdowns, Deontay Wilder kept picking himself back up and showed great determination.

After the fight, Deontay Wilder shared his thoughts on what unfolded on Saturday night. He believes he did his best but that his peak performance simply wasn’t enough to beat ‘The Gypsy King’. Wilder’s still unclear about what actually went wrong in his approach.

Deontay Wilder then highlighted that Fury stepped in at 277 lbs for good reason; he used his excess weight to lean on him, “rough” him up and tire him out. The former WBC champ admitted that Fury’s approach worked effectively and that he succeeded in what he set out to do.

Read More: WATCH: Tyson Fury Caught With Tampered Glove by the Referee

“I did my best, but it wasn’t good enough tonight. I’m not sure what happened. I knew that he didn’t come in at 277 lbs to be a ballet dancer. He came to lean on me, try to rough me up and he succeeded,” said Deontay Wilder.

Tyson Fury used ‘Kronk boxing strategy’ against Deontay Wilder

Both fighters weighed in at their heaviest marks yet- 277 lbs and 240 lbs. ‘The Gypsy King’ has been around this weight range earlier in his career as well; however, 240 was a record high for Wilder. Many speculated that this would prove to be a problem for him in terms of movement and even endurance.

Unlike the previous two fights, the trilogy fight did not see extreme agility in Tyson Fury’s movement and footwork. As Wilder said after the fight, “he didn’t come in at 277 lbs to be a ballet dancer”. There was definitely more clinching and leaning in this fight compared to the previous two bouts.

The Ring Magazine’s Ryan O’Hara recently said that Deontay Wilder credited Fury for succeeding in the third fight. He further explained that leaning on your opponent and then using the big right hand is a classic approach used by most fighters who have trained at least once at Kronk Boxing Gym in Detroit.

Among others, world champions who trained at Kronk are Julio César Chávez, Michael Moorer, Wilfred Benítez, Héctor Camacho,  Naseem Hamed, Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis, Jermain Taylor and even Tyson Fury.

And indeed, all of these fighters have shown this approach time and time again. That is also exactly what ‘The Gypsy King’ showcased on Saturday night.

Whatever went down in the ring between Wilder and Fury in the third fight was simply amazing. Truly a magical night of quality boxing and entertainment. It will be interesting to see what is next for both Wilder and Fury.

What did you think about the Fury vs Wilder 3 fight?

Also Read: Does Deontay Wilder Hit Harder Than Mike Tyson? George Foreman Answers