Tag: boxing news

Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury clashed in a hotly-debated classic (highlights here) last night (Sat., December 1, 2018) from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.

The fight came down to a highly controversial split draw after a fight most felt Fury won quite handily. One judge’s score was added incorrectly. Wilder’s biggest moments were a pair of late-round knockdowns. He very nearly had the lineal champ out cold but was amazed to see him get up somehow.

Fury soon reacted with his own opinion on the result. He focused on the fact that he was fighting on American soil and that may have played a part in it. He thought he should be the WBC champion today. Regardless, the awesome fight brought boxing’s heavyweight division to the forefront of combat sports once again.

Fury Sounds Off Again

Wilder and Fury are sure to throw down again, and the fight will be even more looked forward to because of the rivalry’s heat. Fury has been respectful of Wilder in the day after, yet he spoke up to The Mac Life (via MMA Mania) Sunday to blast the judging.

Let’s say he did not hold back. He even compared the fight to a classic heavyweight robbery from years past:

”To be honest with you, I’ve never seen a worse decision in my life. I dunno what fight them judges are watching. The guy that had it 115-111, he had me losing the first six rounds and I don’t know what he was watching. But this is boxing and it’s not the first time this has happened.

“I think this is as bad of a decision as the first Lennox Lewis / Holyfield fight.”

The controversial split-decision draw result has been getting blasted all over the fighting world for its ineptitude. Most think Fury easily won the vast majority of the rounds. He largely controlled the action with a laser-like jab, stifling movement, and peerless defense. Wilder swung wild over and over, but very few huge shots landed. Those that did knocked Fury down, however.

Gives Boxing A Bad Name?

Even with those huge moments, Fury should probably be the champion. Fans everywhere are crying a corrupt decision to force a rematch, similar to the first Canelo Alvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin match-up. “The Gypsy King” believes the decisions gives boxing a bad name:

”It’s stuff like this that gives boxing a bad name. Reports like this, all the media today will report bad stuff. Controversy, this that and the other. Everybody in boxing is saying it’s a very controversial thing. Time and time again we see it.”

He’s correct with his criticism of such incidents because the sport of boxing is being called a joke today.

Fury closed by citing his hometown favorite defense again, saying that the playing field should be level if he’s going to travel to his opponents’ homeland. In his opinion, judges like the one who scored it 115-11 against him make him wonder what sport he was in:

”You travel if you think it’s going to be a level playing field,” Warren said. “And when you get decisions and you get judges like you got last night, that’s when you think ‘Why don’t we stay at home?’ It should be fair. It’s terrible when you get a judge watching a fight that way, you wonder what sport you’re in. It’s wrong.”

The post Tyson Fury Says Wilder Decision ‘Worse Than Holyfield vs. Lewis’ appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.

Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury met in a classic heavyweight title fight (watch the highlights here) full of many incredible layers last night last night (Sat., December 1, 2018) from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.

The fight’s ending was a supremely controversial one. It came down to the judge’s scorecards, and they called it a split-decision draw. An uproar unfolded as a result. Most who watched the bout felt Fury did enough with his unorthodox style to outlast the power-hitting champion Wilder. Fury was accurate with his jabs and measured bursts of combinations. Perhaps more so, his defense was stifling as he avoided much of the force of Wilder’s usually concussive shots.

That’s not to say Wilder didn’t have his moments. He dropped the lineal champion twice in the later rounds. The second time nearly had “The Gypsy King” out cold, but somehow he got back up. Despite the two knockdowns, however, most thought he would clearly lose on the cards. The ensuing controversy saw a swarm of critical claims, including the inevitable statements that the fight was fixed to book a rematch.

Good & Bad

Those who thought that was the case said the fight showed everything that was wrong with boxing on its most public stage. It was Wilder and Fury’s U.S. debut on pay-per-view. The result was absolutely questionable and Fury probably should have won. I won’t argue that this did show an ugly side of the sport due to the decision rendered. The rematch would have happened anyway because Wilder has a rematch clause.

Yet Wilder vs. Fury also showed a blossoming aspect of boxing that is more exciting than it is controversial. The fight was an epic, back-and-forth classic that, hyperbole aside, was one of the best fights of the year. Fury came back from substance abuse and depression to take it to the reigning, undefeated WBC champ for the better part of 12 rounds. Wilder nearly secured a late come-from-behind knockout to give the fight even more high drama.

The buzz is palpable, and it shows the heavyweight division is finally back. Couple that with British champ Anthony Joshua, who has the other three titles, and heavyweight is in a great spot right now. It’s not quite back to the level of the Ali vs. Frazier days, or even Mike Tyson’s heyday. It may not be back to the days of Holyfield and Lewis, either. But with a Wilder vs. Fury rematch certainly coming and the winner potentially fighting Joshua, momentum is here.

The decision was shrouded in controversy and probably wrong, depending on your point of view. The fight proved Fury is truly back from issues that may decimate lesser men. Wilder showed he has the power to knock out another top undefeated heavyweight. The rematch will be a huge hit, and it should be.

So no matter how you feel about the decision, the heavyweight division is finally back in boxing, and much of that is thanks to Fury vs. Wilder.

The post Deontay Wilder & Tyson Fury Brought Heavyweight Division Back Last Night appeared first on LowKickMMA.com.