The power and strength of Deontay Wilder couldn’t keep Tyson Fury down.
The talented boxer from England came back from two knockdowns, one in the 12th, to remain unbeaten with a split-decision draw against Deontay Wilder Saturday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles.
“I got down put down with some good shots,” said Fury. “I showed good heart to get back up.
I came here tonight and fought my heart out.”
The judges scored the bout 115-111 for Wilder, 114-112 for Fury and 113-113.
In the post-fight press conference, a reporter asked Fury how did he get up from the knockdowns. Fury simply said, “I don’t know.”
“I got a good fighting spirit and you know, I never say die,” said Fury. “Even in the 12th round when I got knocked down heavy, I got back and probably won the round. I fought back and wobbled him a little bit.”
Wilder, the Alabama native, dropped Fury with a right hand in the ninth but Fury stormed back and managed to continue to outbox Wilder. Fury seemed to frustrate Wilder with his elusiveness and effective 1-2 combinations.
“I was rushing my punches,” said Wilder. “That’s something I usually don’t do. I was forcing my punches, instead of sitting back, being patient and waiting for it.”
With fatigue starting to set in on both fighters in the 12th round, Wilder found an opening and hit Fury with a hard right hand, followed by a brutal left that sent Fury to the canvas. Amazingly, Fury got up while Wilder celebrated, thinking it was over.
“We poured our hearts out tonight,” said Wilder. We’re both warriors. When you have a great fight, we give each other all we’ve got. At the end of the fight, that’s what it’s all about.”
Both fighters said they are willing to make the rematch happen during the post-fight interview in the ring.
“I would love for it to be my next fight,” said Wilder. “Let’s give the fans what they want to see. It was a great fight and let’s do it again. It doesn’t matter to me where we do it.”
