Question regarding Deontay Wilder...

[asdfjkl]

This is the first fight of Wilder I do want to stay awake for, somehow I'm really annoyed that the match most likely starts around 04:00 or so sunday morning. I mean really, that's not the time I'd like to be awake actually. I'm not sure what's the time in America around that moment, I guess 22:00, but I may hope those Americans actually watch this fight, because most Europeans probably won't do it.

[SenorPipino]

Most Americans won't watch the fight either.

[candyslim]

So, my question is following: is the level of Wilder's opposition the main (or probably eben only) reason why he still isn't a big star in the Unated States?

I don't think Wilders level of opponents play much of a role at all.
Boxing out here isn't as popular as boxing in the UK, there's way more effort put into the promotional side in the UK.
Look at Ward v Kovalev 2 as a perfect example of crappy promotion in what was a hot fight, it was almost non existent considering the magnitude of the bout.
I think there's a lot of things going on surrounding Deontay Wilder and some of it comes from forces not close to him, I think there are people in the UK that would love him to fall apart so that Joshua can reign supreme and take all the money for themselves.
You can see how they behave on social media and television it's not exactly like it hasn't been done before I've been watching it go on for ages, it's part of the sport to make your opponent unstable in whatever way you can and media is used frequently.
The people in the UK if they were honest which they won't be would tell you at this moment in time Deontay Wilder is the biggest threat to Anthony Joshua hands down, they're scared of him and hoping Luis Ortiz can pull off the win so they don't have to deal with him.
Because once Wilder is out of the way it's pretty smooth sailing for Joshua, who else is out there that can seriously threaten
him, the division is thin just look at the rankings.

What an absolute crock of shite !

I'm a patriotic Brit who will almost always root for my compatriot - I wanted Brook to beat Spence for example. Was I disappointed Spence won, sure in the immediate aftermath, but I was very quickly reconciled to the fact he lost to the better man, that's fine, that's boxing.

Do I think Wilder is the greatest threat to AJ, absolutely. No question about it.

Is Joshua scared of him? Oh do f%#& off.

Am I scared of him on Joshua's behalf? No way.

I just want to see a great fight between Wilder and Ortiz. Do I have a preference who wins? Yes I want Wilder to win.

Why is that? Because I don't want a defeat by Deontay or AJ to scupper their fight for the biggest prize.

How do I see that fight? 60/40 Joshua.

If I genuinely considered it 60/40 or even 80/20 or 90/10 Wilder, would I still want the fight to go ahead? Without a doubt!

What if Wilder beats Joshua? Then he'll have proved himself the King. Long live the King.

But won't I be gutted about Joshua? No, disappointed yes but that's boxing.

Would I want Joshua to avoid Wilder so he could continue as a partial champion if I were convinced he would lose? No I wanted to see Conteh v Galindez and McGuigan v Nelson although I expected our man to lose.

Am I lying about all this?. Obviously I'm going to say 'no' so I'll let you be the judge.

Is that how most Brits look at it? Obviously I can't claim to know what all the boxing fans in the UK think, but I've probably got a better idea of the majority viewpoint than someone who lives at least three thousand miles away.

[actjac]

Why he isn't a big star in USA? He is exciting HW champion who provides a lot of eye-catching knockouts, is really good trash-talker and quite polarising figure among boxing fans. Yet he earns about $1-1.5 million per fight. A lot of people hate him, but hatrege from boxing fans is one of the keys to the good earnings as Floyd Mayweather, who was really boring fighter, has proven. Of course, it has to be said that Floyd has faced much better opposition. So, my question is following: is the level of Wilder's opposition the main (or probably eben only) reason why he still isn't a big star in the Unated States?

Deontay is the most exciting American heavyweight since Mike Tyson and is a legitimate claimant to the world title. But he doesn't have a marketable personality and his "stage presence" is odd. He talks as though he is uneducated and he yells in interviews. He may be real but isn't endearing to the public and isn't someone that the public will get behind thus he better save his pennies because he won't make any on Madison Avenue.

[candyslim]

As a foreigner I wouldn't presume to tell Americans what Americans think, but I was most impressed by Hank's comprehensive explanation. It seemed very plausible to me, and if that was his two cents worth, I'll take a dollar helping please.

[HomicideHenry]

As a foreigner I wouldn't presume to tell Americans what Americans think, but I was most impressed by Hank's comprehensive explanation. It seemed very plausible to me, and if that was his two cents worth, I'll take a dollar helping please.

Thanks... He just keeps putting his foot in his mouth and can't stop... Yesterday he had a good guy moment talking about giving Ortiz a second chance because he's a father too... Then today, bright and early in the morning, he takes shots at Eddie Hearn saying he's just "another white man milking a black fighter," when there's absolutely no reason to say such a thing.

And he wonders WHY he can't get a fight outside of Alabama? BTW thanks Ruthless RKO for pointing out my error. I get Atlanta confused with Alabama, and vice versa.

[Taansend]

.

You're bang out of order, mate

[siablo14]

#1- His attitude/ego is such that it makes him not only a major heel it makes him an unwatchable asshole.

#2- He can't sell out venues outside of Atlanta, Georgia where he's from primarily because of reason #1 and for reason #3.

#3- For far too long he's been spoon fed complete garbage opponents. It's extremely difficult to call yourself a world's champion when all you ever do is fight cannon fodder.

#4- With nearly 40 fights, it can be argued that this fight with Ortiz is the first and only time that he's ever stepped up. That's miserably sad.

#5- Because our world is far more connected than ever, and because for decades America hasn't produced any good heavyweights, the stigma that he's just "another guy" just waiting to get replaced by someone else, and the fact Anthony Joshua exists (and so does Tyson Fury) makes Wilder and the rest of the trinket champions seem meaningless.

#6- Google him or YouTube him and you'll see that he's best known for slapping the piss out of delusional Zelenoff. Hell the little fiasco was once again brought up on "Below the Belt" with Brendan Schaub this week. Other heavyweights can point to hard fought wins as their claim to fame, and all Wilder's got is TMZ covering him beating up a mental case whose 160 pounds and Teddy Atlas scolding Wilder on Friday Night Fights for doing so. It also feeds into reason #1 that Wilder is such a loose cannon and unhinged that it's hard to like him.

#7- How many undefeated heavyweights are there now? How many of them are current or former champions? Six. Lucas Browne, Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, Joseph Parker, Luis Ortiz and himself. It's a first in Heavyweight history, but it makes it all look like a complete novelty. Too many organizations with too many belts per division: Silver, Gold, Super, Lineal, Trans-Pacific, Latino, etc. How special could he be in the eyes of the general public when everyone is wearing a belt? That's part of the reason why viewership is down in the sport because every other sport in the world only has one championship. It's confusing, it's unrelatable, and it's unnecessary.

#8- His style. When you have a guy who is throwing punches like a baseball pitcher or worse, acting like a clown in the middle of the Ring thinking that makes him look cool and impressive, it makes people think two things: "this guy sucks," or "what an asshole." Then throw in the fact that he is so tall and lanky that everything he does looks uncoordinated anyway it makes people remember the day and age when heavy weights looked spectacular in the ring as athletes should.

Just my two cents.

He is from Alabama. I can't remember the last time a serious boxing match was held in Atlanta. The boxing scene in Atlanta was nonexistent when I was there.

[Taansend]

So, my question is following: is the level of Wilder's opposition the main (or probably eben only) reason why he still isn't a big star in the Unated States?

I don't think Wilders level of opponents play much of a role at all.
Boxing out here isn't as popular as boxing in the UK, there's way more effort put into the promotional side in the UK.
Look at Ward v Kovalev 2 as a perfect example of crappy promotion in what was a hot fight, it was almost non existent considering the magnitude of the bout.
I think there's a lot of things going on surrounding Deontay Wilder and some of it comes from forces not close to him, I think there are people in the UK that would love him to fall apart so that Joshua can reign supreme and take all the money for themselves.
You can see how they behave on social media and television it's not exactly like it hasn't been done before I've been watching it go on for ages, it's part of the sport to make your opponent unstable in whatever way you can and media is used frequently.
The people in the UK if they were honest which they won't be would tell you at this moment in time Deontay Wilder is the biggest threat to Anthony Joshua hands down, they're scared of him and hoping Luis Ortiz can pull off the win so they don't have to deal with him.
Because once Wilder is out of the way it's pretty smooth sailing for Joshua, who else is out there that can seriously threaten
him, the division is thin just look at the rankings.

What an absolute crock of shite !

I'm a patriotic Brit who will almost always root for my compatriot - I wanted Brook to beat Spence for example. Was I disappointed Spence won, sure in the immediate aftermath, but I was very quickly reconciled to the fact he lost to the better man, that's fine, that's boxing.

Do I think Wilder is the greatest threat to AJ, absolutely. No question about it.

Is Joshua scared of him? Oh do f%#& off.

Am I scared of him on Joshua's behalf? No way.

I just want to see a great fight between Wilder and Ortiz. Do I have a preference who wins? Yes I want Wilder to win.

Why is that? Because I don't want a defeat by Deontay or AJ to scupper their fight for the biggest prize.

How do I see that fight? 60/40 Joshua.

If I genuinely considered it 60/40 or even 80/20 or 90/10 Wilder, would I still want the fight to go ahead? Without a doubt!

What if Wilder beats Joshua? Then he'll have proved himself the King. Long live the King.

But won't I be gutted about Joshua? No, disappointed yes but that's boxing.

Would I want Joshua to avoid Wilder so he could continue as a partial champion if I were convinced he would lose? No I wanted to see Conteh v Galindez and McGuigan v Nelson although I expected our man to lose.

Am I lying about all this?. Obviously I'm going to say 'no' so I'll let you be the judge.

Is that how most Brits look at it? Obviously I can't claim to know what all the boxing fans in the UK think, but I've probably got a better idea of the majority viewpoint than someone who lives at least three thousand miles away.

Mate, you have to remember that Evander is a f*cking idiot

[siablo14]

Yes. He has never been in a Huge fight.

Wilder 214 3/4. Lightest since 2009.

Ortiz 241 1/4

Wilder's weight makes me think that he will use the same tactics against Ortiz as he used against Stiverne in their first fight - move a lot, be catious, work behind the jab.

I said the same thing.

[candyslim]

As a foreigner I wouldn't presume to tell Americans what Americans think, but I was most impressed by Hank's comprehensive explanation. It seemed very plausible to me, and if that was his two cents worth, I'll take a dollar helping please.

Thanks... He just keeps putting his foot in his mouth and can't stop... Yesterday he had a good guy moment talking about giving Ortiz a second chance because he's a father too... Then today, bright and early in the morning, he takes shots at Eddie Hearn saying he's just "another white man milking a black fighter," when there's absolutely no reason to say such a thing.

And he wonders WHY he can't get a fight outside of Alabama? BTW thanks Ruthless RKO for pointing out my error. I get Atlanta confused with Alabama, and vice versa.

Exactly. When he climbed into the ring and told Ortiz "I'm gonna bless you again" it was a bit cheesy and cringworthy but he won me over in that I believed completely that he meant what he said. But like you say, then he goes and alienates people saying something disrespectful and unnecessary and gets people's backs up again.

[candyslim]

Yes. He has never been in a Huge fight.

Wilder 214 3/4. Lightest since 2009.

Ortiz 241 1/4

Wilder's weight makes me think that he will use the same tactics against Ortiz as he used against Stiverne in their first fight - move a lot, be catious, work behind the jab.

I said the same thing.

That's how he wins the fight. Probably the only way.

[candyslim]

I don't think Wilders level of opponents play much of a role at all.
Boxing out here isn't as popular as boxing in the UK, there's way more effort put into the promotional side in the UK.
Look at Ward v Kovalev 2 as a perfect example of crappy promotion in what was a hot fight, it was almost non existent considering the magnitude of the bout.
I think there's a lot of things going on surrounding Deontay Wilder and some of it comes from forces not close to him, I think there are people in the UK that would love him to fall apart so that Joshua can reign supreme and take all the money for themselves.
You can see how they behave on social media and television it's not exactly like it hasn't been done before I've been watching it go on for ages, it's part of the sport to make your opponent unstable in whatever way you can and media is used frequently.
The people in the UK if they were honest which they won't be would tell you at this moment in time Deontay Wilder is the biggest threat to Anthony Joshua hands down, they're scared of him and hoping Luis Ortiz can pull off the win so they don't have to deal with him.
Because once Wilder is out of the way it's pretty smooth sailing for Joshua, who else is out there that can seriously threaten
him, the division is thin just look at the rankings.

What an absolute crock of shite !

I'm a patriotic Brit who will almost always root for my compatriot - I wanted Brook to beat Spence for example. Was I disappointed Spence won, sure in the immediate aftermath, but I was very quickly reconciled to the fact he lost to the better man, that's fine, that's boxing.

Do I think Wilder is the greatest threat to AJ, absolutely. No question about it.

Is Joshua scared of him? Oh do f%#& off.

Am I scared of him on Joshua's behalf? No way.

I just want to see a great fight between Wilder and Ortiz. Do I have a preference who wins? Yes I want Wilder to win.

Why is that? Because I don't want a defeat by Deontay or AJ to scupper their fight for the biggest prize.

How do I see that fight? 60/40 Joshua.

If I genuinely considered it 60/40 or even 80/20 or 90/10 Wilder, would I still want the fight to go ahead? Without a doubt!

What if Wilder beats Joshua? Then he'll have proved himself the King. Long live the King.

But won't I be gutted about Joshua? No, disappointed yes but that's boxing.

Would I want Joshua to avoid Wilder so he could continue as a partial champion if I were convinced he would lose? No I wanted to see Conteh v Galindez and McGuigan v Nelson although I expected our man to lose.

Am I lying about all this?. Obviously I'm going to say 'no' so I'll let you be the judge.

Is that how most Brits look at it? Obviously I can't claim to know what all the boxing fans in the UK think, but I've probably got a better idea of the majority viewpoint than someone who lives at least three thousand miles away.

Mate, you have to remember that Evander is a f*cking idiot :lol

I hadn't previously suspected. Maybe he's just good at doing impressions