Deontay Wilder, or the “Bronze Bomber,” stands a towering six foot, seven inches tall but his body count of knockouts is sky high.
The death-dealing Wilder is undefeated through 33 fights and holds 32 knockouts to his name. He was last seen in the ring challenging Bermane Stiverne for the WBC heavyweight title. For the first time the knockout eluded him but the championship strap did not.
The Alabama native makes his first title defense against the unheralded Eric Molina (23-2) at Bartow Arena in Birmingham, Alabama this weekend on June 13. The action will be broadcast live on Showtime Championship Boxing (9 p.m. ET).
It is the first world title fight ever held in the Heart of Dixie.
Chances are high Wilder puts on an excellent showing in front of a hot local crowd and notches up a resounding finish of another overmatched opponent.
Molina has been stopped twice—both in the very first round. The KO, as brutal as it may be, will have a tough time topping Wilder’s long list of savage knockouts.
And it’s a long, long list but here are the most vicious of them all—his pummeling of supertroll Charlie Zelenoff not included.
5. Bombs Drop on ESPN
KO 1 Joseph Rabotte
Deontay Wilder, 23 years of age and 3-0, was less than a year removed from winning bronze at the 2008 Summer Olympics when he made his U.S. television debut against Joseph Rabotte (3-5).
Rabotte took this fight on two days notice and couldn’t make it out of the first round, touching the canvas three times in the process. The last of which came after being staggered in the corner by a one-two from Wilder that was followed up by the future world champion’s patented overhand right that left Rabotte spilt over on the ground with his left leg distorted backwards—reminiscent of the first matchup between UFC heavyweights Mirko “Cro Cop” and Gabriel Gonzaga.
Kelsey Arnold, 1-2-2 going in, made things easy for the 5-0 Wilder, literally ducking his head and closing his eyes while he swung with reckless abandon. 61 seconds into the match, Wilder uncorked a right hand that stiffened Arnold up before falling to his back where laid for almost the entirety of the referee’s 10-count.
4. TKO 1 Audley Harrison
50 seconds into the opening round, Wilder (27-0) landed his renowned right hand on the retreating temple of Harrison—who was 31-6 at the time and just two months removed from winning the heavyweight Prizefighter tournament.
The Bronze Bomber jumped on his staggered opponent, hurling wide, curled punches at every inch of Harrison. The berserk onslaught was scary to watch from more than one perspective.
The frenzied attack left Wilder off balance, nearly toppling over himself—something no professional boxer should be doing.
But even more frightening was his blistering hand speed, especially considering the broad strokes of violence Wilder was painting with.
Harrison struggled to make it to his feet and the referee decided to call a halt to the onrush.
3. TKO 2 Dominique Alexander
Wilder finally opened up in Round 2, forcing his opponent into the corner, unleashing a six-punch combination that dropped him for a count of nine.
Alexander wasn’t so lucky moments later.
With his opponent’s back to yet another corner, Wilder stuck out his left hand to find range before letting loose a right shot that would’ve spun Alexander into a windstorm had it not been for the ropes to stop the rotation.
Wilder was already walking away before his opponent even hit the canvas—boxing’s equivalent of a walk-off home run.
2. KO 3 Kelvin Price
It was finally time for Deontay Wilder to pick on someone his own size.
Kelvin Price, like Wilder, was undefeated. Also similar to Wilder, Price was a freak athlete who dabbled in basketball—playing one season in the NBA Development League.
But more importantly, Price was the first opponent to match Wilder’s physical tools. He stood 6’6″ and sported an 82-inch reach—one inch shorter than Wilder’s.
This fight wasn’t short on anticipation. The two were originally scheduled to fight four months prior. They finally hooked up in December 2012 for the vacant WBC Continental Americas Heavyweight Title (whatever that is).
Price made Wilder work through the first two rounds, tagging the Alabama-native up and down and moving his feet well—something drastically different than the rooted-to-the-spot plodding his previous 25 opponents employed.
Wilder, though, eventually caught up to him.
Just over half-a-minute into Round 3, referee Ray Corona separated the two giants out of a clinch. Wilder strutted back to his opponent and unlatched an overhand right out of hell in direct route of Price’s skull.
The punch swept across the skyline and collapsed Price in a sudden heap. Corona didn’t even bother to finish his 10-count before waving the fight off.
1. KO 1 Siarhei Liakhovich
Siarhei “The White Wolf” Liakhovich remains the only male Belarusian champion in history, lifting the WBO heavyweight belt after upsetting Lamon Brewster in 2006. It was a terrific fight and the White Wolf got off the canvas to win.
Deontay Wilder, however, made sure he was unable to repeat the act.
The two traded heavy jabs early on. But Wilder soon capitalized on his speed advantage. He fired off a simmering one-two halfway into Round 1 that drove Liakhovich into the ropes where another right cross stunned him and one more right hand cracked him on the head while he fell to his back.
It was a terrifying sight when Liakhovich was stretched out on the canvas, violently convulsing so disturbingly that there was no doubt from referee Tom Taylor that this fight was over. Ringside physicians immediately rushed to his aid.
And that’s as vicious as boxing and knockouts can get.
