Tyson Fury eliminates Deontay Wilder to retain WBC title

After three fights with nine combined knockdowns and a host of unforgettable moments, Tyson Fury has finally ended his epic heavyweight rivalry with Deontay Wilder with one final farewell punch.

Fury rose from the canvas twice in the fourth round and finally stopped Wilder with a devastating right hand in the 11th round, retaining his WBC title on Saturday night in the thrilling conclusion of a superlative boxing trilogy.

Fury (31-0-1, 22 KOs) finished Wilder for the second time in a row in their three fights, but only after a round-trip event that included five combined knockdowns and several apparent moments of impending defeat for both men. Wilder eventually found himself face down on the canvas at 1:10 of round 11 after a sharp right hook shot from above by the 6-foot-9 Fury.

“It was a big fight,” said Fury, the sport’s online heavyweight champion and former Unified World Champion. “It was worthy of any trilogy in the history of the sport. He’s a top fighter, and he gave me a real (test) tonight.”

Wilder (42-2-1) was knocked down in the third round and looked like he was about to come out, but he improbably rallied to knock down Fury twice in the dying minutes of the fourth. The British champion was deeply shaken, but he also pulled himself together and fought.

“He caught up to me twice in the fourth round, but I never thought, ‘Oh, it’s over,'” said Fury. “He shook me, knocked me down, but it’s boxing, and it’s life too. It’s not the number of times you get knocked down. You have to keep going. beat and keep moving. “

Fury knocked down Wilder again with a concussion right hand in the middle of the 10th, but Wilder recovered and even knocked out Fury in the dying seconds of the lap.

Fury persevered – and after the referee jumped in to greet him at 11, Fury climbed the ropes in weariness in front of a frenzied crowd of 15,820 at the T-Mobile Arena at the south end of the Strip in Las Vegas.

Fury then burst into a rendition of “Walking in Memphis,” in keeping with his post-fight tradition of serenading his crowds.

“I didn’t see the knockout tonight, but I felt it,” Fury said. “I hit him with a strong, crunchy right hook in the temple, and shots like that, they end their careers. He’s definitely been punished so we’ll see what he can do in the future. . “

Wilder took a huge penalty and appeared to be physically exhausted for much of the fight, but the veteran American champion showed his tenacity while throwing powerful punches at tired legs. Fury landed 150 hits in total versus 72 for Wilder, with Fury logging in 52 times in the last three rounds alone.

The fight concluded possibly one of the most memorable rivalries in recent boxing history – a trilogy defined by two remarkable displays of pugilistic tenacity. Fury said the rivalry was “done now, done for good”.

Any three-fight streak is a rarity in fractured modern sport, but Fury and Wilder have brought out the best in each other through a rivalry spanning nearly three calendar years.

They first met in late 2018 in downtown Los Angeles, where Wilder knocked down Fury twice in the final rounds of an excellent fight otherwise controlled by Fury. The second knockdown in Round 12 left Fury flat on his back and motionless as Wilder celebrated, but Fury improbably stood up and hit the bell in a fight judged by toss.

The second fight took place in Las Vegas in February 2020, and Fury’s dominance was much clearer. The British champion beat Wilder until the seventh round, when Wilder’s corner threw in the towel on a one-sided victory and Fury claimed Wilder’s WBC belt.

In that decisive third encounter, Wilder was somehow even tougher – and he repeatedly came close to beating Fury, a senior technician.

Wilder opened the first round with a powerful jab and a good game plan, but seemed to tire early when he didn’t hurt Fury early on. In the dying minute of the third, Fury knocked Wilder out with a shot, then escaped a clinch to land a two-hit combination that brought Wilder to his knees. Fury beat Wilder again with the crowd on his feet, but Wilder reached the bell.

Fury appeared to be in control until the end of the fourth, when Wilder landed a powerful right hand directly on top of Fury’s head. Fury staggered and eventually fell to the canvas, only to get up and then be shot down again moments later amid the stunned roars of the crowd.

Fury survived the round and both fighters landed damaging shots without knockdowns in the fifth and sixth. Fury injured Wilder in the seventh with a series of punches that sent Wilder back against the ropes.

Fury again injured a visibly exhausted Wilder in the eighth with two huge shots, and the ring medic examined Wilder before allowing the fight to continue until the ninth.

Another damaging right hand from Fury swept Wilder’s legs under him in the 10th, but Wilder finished the round, injuring even Fury late.

It ended with one more right hand at close range. Wilder reached for the ropes on the way down, but landed face down with his glassy eyes.

The fight was another defeat for Wilder, but a validation of the former US Olympian’s impressive tenacity, as well as his determination to win this third fight even after the one-sided nature of their second meeting.

Wilder exercised the rematch clause in his contract to reclaim his belt, and a referee ruled in his favor after Fury tried to book a showdown with fellow British heavyweight Anthony Joshua. Fury resignedly agreed to complete the trilogy, but made it clear that he expected to stop Wilder again.

It happened, but only after a lot more drama than even Fury could have imagined.

“I beat him three times,” Fury said after the final. “I’m a sportsman, and I wanted to give him some love and respect, and he didn’t want to give it back. That’s his problem.”

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