BY TIM PARSONS
WBC heavyweight champion, Deontay Wilder stopped Johann Duhaupas in the 11th round of a tough fight to retain his belt in the second defence of the title since he won it in January.
Fighting in his home town of Birmingham, Alabama, the American knockout artist battered the French challenger, forcing the late stoppage after the referee adjudged it time to call a halt on the fight.
Duhaupas had previously never been stopped and showed his great resilience in refusing to succumb to the offense delivered by a man who has blown away all but one of his opponents. Advancing forward from the outset, the Frenchman showed courage and confidence in his intention to try and take the fight to his unbeaten opponent who was fighting in his backyard. The challenger sustained a cur to the bridge of his nose in the opening round, but was unhindered in his determination to try and win. By the 5th round, Wilder had a nasty swell under his left eye- the sort of swelling he had never suffered before now. However, in the 11th round, Wilder delivered a barrage of unanswered punches that prompted the intervention of the referee to wave the fight off. Duhaupas was still on his feet, but battered , and in no state to continue. He climbed on the ropes to celebrate before a rapturous crowd.
“He’s got a hell of a chin,” Wilder said after the win. It is only the second time that Wilder has gone beyond 4 rounds- the first time was when he beat Bermane Stiverne on points over twelve rounds in January to become the first American since 2006 to hold one of the heavyweight belts. Then in June, he stopped Eric Molina after 9 hard rounds.
“Without his toughness and ability to keep coming, I wouldn’t be able to display what I have,” Wilder said . The Frenchman had only lost twice in 31 fights and considering the fact he had never been stopped, it is fair to say he is a tough guy. He proved it in his fight against the champion.
ELECTRIC
The atmosphere was so electric, there were several chants of Deontey, Deontey, throughout most of the fight as the auditorium was filled with not only family and friends of the huge and amiable Alabama powerhouse, but even a few dignitaries in attendance too. Heavyweight boxing has for years been in decline and only recently experience a bit of a transformation with the likes of exciting prospects like Olympic gold medalist Anthony Joshua in the Uk and loudmouth Tyson Fury, who is scheduled to face Wladimir Klitschko soon. For Americans, the division has long been dead since the retirement of their celebrate Iron Mike Tyson who dominated the division and brought excitement to it in his day. So, having a new huge athlete who knocks out guys has certainly been a catch for the American public who are still basking in the joy of having someone who can fly their flag.
Televised live on NBC in the first broadcast of a heavyweight title bout by a leading American network channel since 1985, the American public will be hoping he can continue winning and making them proud. Wilder has expressed interest in facing Klitschko next year after the reigning undisputed heavyweight champion fights and presumably beats Britain’s Tyson Fury. I say presumably, because if Tyson pulls off the upset(as is quite possible), then the stage will be set for a dramatic showdown between Wilder and Fury. Wilder first has a mandatory in March against tough Russian, Alexander Povetkin, and his team have also expressed an interest to get him a fight before then in December. He will need to win both fights before looking at the winner of Fury and Klitschko.
There is no telling whether Wilder would defeat either Fury or Klitschko when they meet, though my money will be on him to knock out Fury if they ever met. Fury just does not look like one who can withstand the power of the ambitious American, though when it comes to Klitschko, then it is more difficult to speculate on what will happen. Klitschko is technically efficient, powerful, strategic, and very experienced. However, by they time they meet, Klitschko would have aged further and will be 40, making it more probable for a hungry Wilder to blow him out and end his reign. There is still about a year to go for that, and anything can happen in a year. For now, Wilder has done what he needed to do, and is on a very interesting path.
