Tyson Fury caps epic trilogy vs. Deontay Wilder with 11th-round KO in thriller
LAS VEGAS — Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder put on a heavyweight battle for the ages on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena. There were five knockdowns, three by Fury and two by Wilder, in a wild battle that enthralled the crowd of 15,820 that witnessed one of the best heavyweight fights in years.
Fury dropped Wilder with a crushing right hand in the 11th, causing referee Russell Mora to wave it off and stop it at 1:10, giving Fury the TKO victory and a 2-0-1 edge in their epic trilogy.
Over the three fights, Fury knocked Wilder down five times and Wilder dropped Fury four times.
They saved the best for last, though. They went at each other with, yeah, a fury on Saturday, ripping big shots at each other from the opening bell. But Wilder was weakened by the big shots the nearly 280-pound WBC champion kept hitting him with.
He was struggling to keep his balance in the latter stages, but was still dangerous and catching Fury with big shots.
“It was a tough fight and he came in really determined,” said Fury, the lineal champion who retained the WBC heavyweight title with the 31st win and 22nd knockout of his career. “I’ve always said I’m the best heavyweight in the world and he’s the second-best.”
This was, by far, the most entertaining fight of the series. The first fight was excellent but most of the drama in that bout was saved for the 12th, when Wilder dropped Fury and Fury unexpectedly got up. Fury dominated the second bout, stopping Wilder in the seventh.
But this time, both took and gave out a lot of punishment. In the third, Fury dropped Wilder late in the round and that may have saved Wilder from being stopped then.
But if you thought he was out, you don’t know Deontay Wilder. He started the fourth on unsteady legs, but dropped Fury twice in the round and had him in massive trouble. Fury did not look stable as the round ended.
Fury, though, is unimaginably tough and took over the fight in the fifth. He was leaning on Wilder, forcing the smaller man to carry his weight, and he was hitting him consistently with massive rights.
Wilder was courageous in taking those and still fighting back. His problem was twofold: He was fighting not just the best heavyweight in the world, but a guy who it can’t now be denied is one of the best ever. And on top of that, he was only throwing one punch at a time and that wasn’t enough to take care of a ring genius like Fury, no matter how much power one has.
When Fury dropped him in the 11th, Mora quickly stopped it and Fury went to the ropes in celebration. "The Gypsy King" is the king of the heavyweights and the king of a sport that needs more of his kind: Colorful, engaging, exciting fighters who take on all comers and deliver time and again.
