Coach: Cut Inside The Ear Of Deontay Wilder May Have Affected His Equilibrium
Deontay Wilder suffered his first professional defeat at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday night. The 34-year-old heavyweight met Tyson Fury in a much-anticipated rematch of their December 2018 fight.
The first bout was highly controversial after Fury dominated large portions of the 12 rounds before suffering two late knockdowns. Despite the rally from Wilder, Englishman Fury had clearly done enough to claim the win via the judges. However, the fight was ultimately scored a split draw, paving the way for a monumental second clash between the sports top two heavyweights.
‘The Gypsy King’ was intent on taking it out of the judge’s hands second time round. He went for the knockout from the first bell and scored a vicious knockdown in round three. Fury caught Wilder on the ear with a beautiful shot, sending the former WBC champion crashing to the mat. The Alabama native climbed to his feet but struggled to get any type of offence going. His ear was visibly bleeding and anyone with eyes could see he was on shaky legs. He bravely fought on for a few more rounds before again being dropped and ultimately stopped by the brutal Brit.
Following his first career loss, Wilder drops to 42-1-1 as a professional. It is his first boxing loss since losing in the 2008 Beijing Olympics semi-final. ‘The Bronze Bomber’ was outpointed by Italian Clemente Russo. Six months prior he suffered his last knockout loss to Russian heavyweight Evgeny Romanov.
The American was transported to hospital immediately after the fight and therefore didn’t partake in the traditional post-fight press conference. In his place was trainer Jay Deas who said via Helen Yee. “A cut inside his ear may have affected his equilibrium. So, he’s just going to get a couple stitches there.”
Is this ear injury the cause of Deontay Wilder’s defeat to Tyson Fury?
