Deontay Wilder has said repeatedly that he was unable to land the big punch until late in his first fight with Tyson Fury, who went down in the ninth and 12th rounds, at least in part because he was trying too hard for the knockout.
There could’ve been a second reason.
Jay Deas, Wilder’s longtime trainer and manager, said that his fighter injured his right wrist very early in training camp for their December 2018 draw in Los Angeles. The wrist was healthy come fight time but, Deas said, the injury didn’t help Wilder in one respect.
Wilder faces Fury in a rematch on Feb. 22 in Las Vegas.
“The first time, when the fight was first announced, Deontay had really fairly severely injured his right arm and we kind of didn’t take any chances with during camp,” Deas said on The PBC Podcast. “We hit mitts and stuff instead of hitting people, not wanting to land awkwardly and reinjuring it.
“… Going into the fight he was fine but the thing that was lost was the timing. I think you saw that in Rounds 1 through 8, that the timing on the right hand wasn’t quite right. Well, there are no issues this time. So I feel really good about where we are.”
Another factor might’ve been working against Wilder: According to Deas, he didn’t eat enough in the days leading up to the fight.
Wilder weighed in at only 212½ for the first fight, 44 pounds lighter than Fury. Deas and the team don’t pay too much attention to Wilder’s weight but they would prefer that he weigh more than that.
“He was so anxious the first time he wasn’t eating enough. He’s wasn’t eating at all at times,” Deas said. “He came in at 212 and, the night of the fight, 209. By the time he knocked Fury down in the 12th round, Deontay was probably at cruiserweight (below 200).”
Wilder has been outweighed (42-0-1, 41 KOs) in all but seven of his 43 fights, the last time in 2012. His results suggest the weight isn’t important.
“We’re so used to him being outweighed,” Deas said. “It’s probably an advantage. The speed is a difference, a factor. The speed is part of the reason he can hit so hard. That power he generates does come in part from velocity.
“A 250-pound Deontay Wilder? That’s isn’t him. He’s got awkward effectiveness and unique athleticism. That probably works best when he’s 218 to 226.”