Malik Scott Says Wilder Still Wants To Box
Malik Scott still sees Deontay Wilder fighting sometime next year.
Wilder is not in the best of form, having lost his last two fights. He suffered a unanimous decision defeat against Joseph Parker. The loss meant that his two-fight deal with Anthony Joshua did not occur. It was contingent on him getting past Parker. Wilder had the chance to set things right when he fought Zhilei Zhang in his last bout. The Bronze Bomber was looking to remind everybody of his knockout power.
However, things did not go to plan. The 41-year-old Zhang knocked out Wilder in the fifth round. That raised serious question marks over whether Wilder would continue fighting. He is now 38 years old and no closer to getting a title shot. Wilder is the former WBC Heavyweight Champion and made ten successful title defenses. He had three fights with Tyson Fury, which secured his financial future.
Scott On Wilder
Wilder entered boxing to raise money for his daughter, who suffers from Spina Bifida. Given that he has secured his financial future, fans could forgive Wilder for walking away. But Scott expects his man to continue fighting, with bouts eyed for next year.
“Fighting is in Deontay’s heart, it’s something that he wants to do. We in 2024 now let’s see what 2025 look like, first quarter, and we’ll go from there. Yes, there’s no telling [if he fights AJ]. You just never know,” Scott said
Nevertheless, that might take some time. During a recent gathering, Wilder was spotted with a sling on his arm. It is not exactly clear how the injury came about, but it could have been in the aftermath of Zhang’s loss or something he picked up during training.
Wilder’s Options
There is the possible Joshua fight. AJ is coming off his own knockout loss to Daniel Dubois. He was dropped four times on his way to a fifth-round stoppage defeat. Joshua missed out on the IBF Heavyweight Title, meaning that he is not closer to a title shot. A fight with Wilder could come about since talks had first started in 2019 when it could have happened for undisputed. The fight would still generate a big sum, as it puts two big punches against each other.
Alternatively, there is the Francis Ngannou fight. Wilder and Ngannou were reportedly in talks over a two-fight deal. This was before Ngannou decided to make his boxing debut against Tyson Fury. One of those bouts would have been in boxing, while the other would have been in MMA. Unfortunately, that did not happen. Ngannou then lost to Fury and Joshua. But Ngannou has indicated his desire to box again with Wilder as a possible opponent, leaving the Bronze Bomber with plenty to think about.
Wilder did take a lot of punishment in his loss to Zhang. Since there is no financial reason to fight, the Bronze Bomber must decide if it is a risk worth taking.
Find all the latest boxing news and MMA breaking updates on boxingnews.com.
