Deontay Wilder may have just been defeated once inside the bocing ring, but the KO artist tasted his own medicine way back in 2008. Wilder’s journey from being an Olympic bronze medalist to WBO heavyweight champion will surprise many. And rightfully so.
Wilder has come a long way from being U.S’s only hope of a gold medal in the 2008 Olympics to headlining a PPV inside Las Vegas. However, he lost to a more experienced Clemente Russo in the semifinals of the Olympics to earn the bronze medal. Soon after, Wilder made his professional boxing debut and picked up his first victory in Nov. 2018.
Deontay Wilder loses for the first time
Wilder is probably the best heavyweight fighter right now, with a stellar record that boasts an impressive 41 KO victories in 42 career wins. So far, no boxer has been able to stop Wilder, and the sole decision victory stands as the only time Wilder could not close a fight with a KO victory.
Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury settled on a draw, after an impressive 12 rounds that saw Wilder take down Fury twice. Someone with the power and ferociousness like Wilder can probably take on any boxer in the division right now. However, Wilder lost a fighting battle against Tyson Fury, inside MGM Arena, Las Vegas in a rematch.
Watch Wilder get beaten up and knocked out
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1gTxYRy93w
However, Wilder did not necessarily enjoy the same kind of success during his amateur boxing days. While Wilder remains undefeated in his 42 in-ring appearances so far, he had an equally impressive amateur boxing record at 35 wins and five losses.
Before the Olympics, a young Deontay Wilder took on the Russian powerhouse Evgeny Romanov. Quite surprisingly, Wilder’s last stoppage loss came in February of 2008. Romanov won the silver medal at the 2008 Russian championship and would go on to win gold in 2009.
Romanov dominated Wilder when they fought at the cruiserweight division around 12 years back. Both the boxers compete in the heavyweight division right now. While Wilder won the first round in the judges’ scorecard, Romanov had a very effective strategy second-round forward. He countered every punch that Wilder threw and looked brilliant in the second round making Wilder look naive and restless. Romanov was swift and landed a lethal right hand that forced the referee to do a standing count.
In the third round, Romanov continued with the same strategy and managed to force another standing count. This time though, Romanov connected a combination of punches and sent Wilder to the canvas to grab the win. Wilder struggled on his feet and crash-landed near the ropes. The loss marks the last time Wilder suffered a KO loss. And now that Wilder has become synonymous with KO, and Tyson Fury claiming to knock him out, boxing fans have a lot of reasons to tune into this boxing spectacle.
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