Heavyweight champ and knockout machine Deontay Wilder is a literal world-wind of destruction, just look at his dances after he knocks someone out, his arms flailing around him as he spins around in celebration.
Everything about him exudes savage energy, from the thunderous two-hand combination he always throws to the reckless leap in for the kill after he stuns his opponent with a crushing right-hand hammer shot.
Wilder's arms are like sling shots when he's finishing off another fighter. His arms rubber bands are propelling his gloves toward their target just before it comes crumbling down in a loud demolition.
He's 40-0 with 39 knockouts. Think about that, in 40 professional fights; he's knocked out 99% of the trained fighters he's been up against, many of which, happened in the most exciting ways possible.
In a sport that's been starved for an American heavyweight boxing star, Deontay Wilder just might be the USA's next great fighter. And perhaps even successor to Floyd Mayweather's pound-for-pound crown.
Last weekend, he proved that by beating fellow undefeated heavyweight, Luis "King Kong" Ortiz, in what some people are calling the fight of the year. The victory over Ortiz represents Wilder's biggest win as a pro and propels him toward potential superstardom. And people are starting to pay attention.
Deontay Wilder
Wilder's rise to stardom began in 2005. That's the year his daughter was diagnosed with spina bifida, a condition where bones in the vertebrae don't form properly around the spinal cord. Wilder realized that he had to take boxing more seriously if he was going to be able to give his daughter the best treatment possible.
“She’s all the reason why I’m here right now. Without her being born — me having her — I would not be boxing right now,” he said in an interview as an amateur heavyweight. Even then, he knew he was going places.
Wilder won the bronze medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Ten years later, he sits on the precipice of one of the most prestigious titles that haven't been legitimately occupied since young Mike Tyson was destroying the competition in the late 1980s.
Anthony Joshua
The British heavyweight is one of only two or three people who could stop Wilder's rise to the top of the sports long defunct glamour division. Joshua is highly regarded as the best heavyweight on the planet right now after beating the longtime champion, and European boxing legend, Vitaly Klitschko last year. He's also destroyed his competition, in no less impressive fashion than Wilder has, sporting a perfect 20-0 record with 20 knockouts.
Joshua is a more traditional style fighter with the tremendous power of his own. However, Joshua hasn't answered questions about his chin yet, and he's never faced the kind of power that Wilder would bring to a fight.
Joshua has spoken about Wilder but hasn't committed to fighting him yet.
Joshua has also gone as far as suggesting that Wilder needed to fight Tyson Fury or Ortiz, two men he hadn't fought before Wilder could fight him. People around Joshua have been gone as far as to suggest that Wilder is ducking a big showdown between the two heavyweights.
Wilder's manager, Shelly Finkel, responded to reports that Wilder was ducking Joshua by reading a letter that he received from Joshua's camp in late 2017. In the letter, Joshua's people promised to look at some fight details and get back to Finkel. Wilder's camp hasn't heard anything since.
"The bottom line is, if a someone wants a fight, it gets made," Finkel said after Wilder's victory over Ortiz.
Joshua's man, Eddie Hearn, responded to that by saying that AJ was concentrating on his next opponent, WBO heavyweight champion, Joseph Parker.
Joseph Parker
The New Zealand heavyweight is 24-0 with 18 knockouts. Even Wilder said that Joshua defeating Parker wasn't a sure thing, although very few people believe that Parker has anything more than a small chance against Joshua. Still, though, Parker is only 26 years old, and if he did manage to upset Joshua, it would propel him into a unification bout with Wilder.
Questions about Wilder
Because of his reckless style, Wilder has been rocked a couple of times in his career, including in the 7th round in the fight against Luis Ortiz. Anthony Joshua is stronger, faster, and better than Ortiz. So there is no telling what could happen if Wilder gets caught in a fight against Joshua. The results could be ugly.
Even with all that's been said, the best option for Wilder would be to fight Joshua. It's the fight Wilder has been calling for and the one that fans want to see. It would also make so much money; it would warrant its own money belt. If Joshua gets past Parker, conventional wisdom suggests that negotiations will begin.
Should an agreement not be reached, we could see Wilder against another undefeated British heavyweight, Tyson Fury, a former champion himself who has largely been out of the ring because of personal issues, or even Joseph Parker, should he beat Joshua or give a spirited effort in a loss.
