SONHAR: January 18, 2015 – It?s a new year, and as of Saturday night there?s a new WBC heavyweight king: Deontay Wilder, ?The Bronze Bomber,? an Alabaman who is now undefeated at 33-0, and is the first American-born boxer in nearly a decade to claim a piece of the world heavyweight championship pie (Wladimir Klitschko owns the rest).
The surprise is not that Wilder defeated title-holder Bermane Stiverne, who had earned the crown by knocking out perennial contender Chris Arreola to pick up the title Vitali Klitschko, Vladimir?s brother, had vacated late in 2013. Stiverne-Wilder was considered a pick-?em proposition, with a good case to be made for either man to win. The shock came in the way Wilder, who had stopped all 32 of his previous opponents, triumphed: a unanimous 12-round decision.
The odds against this match going the distance were steep. Wilder?s punching power was obvious. But Stiverne, with 21 KOs among his 24 wins (against a single defeat, by TKO), was himself no powder-puff hitter. Someone was going to end up on his back, looking up bleary-eyed at the ring lights. The question was ? who?
There were two likely scenarios in this contest. It could turn out to be like George Foreman?s two-round, six-knockdown destruction of Joe Frazier in 1973, with Wilder as Foreman and Stiverne as Frazier. Or it could be similar to the 13-round boxing lesson Larry Holmes administered to hard-punching but untested challenger Gerry Cooney in 1982, with Stiverne as Holmes and Wilder as Cooney.
As it turned out, it was Wilder who called up images of vintage Holmes, using a spearing jab and a solid straight right to keep his shorter opponent at bay. Standing 6-foot-seven but weighing only 219 pounds, Wilder seemed rather spindly by 21st century heavyweight standards ? something of a supersize version of the way 6-foot-2 welterweight Tommy Hearns appeared in his heyday. Stiverne, at 6-foot-2 and 239 pounds, looked pudgy in comparison. He also looked bewildered by Wilder?s boxing skills, and surprised at his opponent?s stamina.
Although Stiverne absorbed more than a few of Wilder?s hellacious rights, he didn?t go down like all of Deontay?s previous opponents. But that doesn?t mean Wilder?s power is overrated. Even in his lone defeat, to journeyman Demetrice King by fourth-round TKO back in 2007, Stiverne was not taken off his feet. And he withstood the not-inconsiderable crunch of Arreola in two fights. However, he had no answers for the unanticipated problems Wilder posed.
So now there?s new life in a division that had been monotonously ruled by the Klitschko brothers. Wilder, who sports so many tattoos that it?s hard to tell where the ink ends and his skin begins, is a colorful character who can attract fans who had previously given up on the heavyweight division. Can he beat Wladimir Klitschko? That?s still a long shot, even though ?The Bronze Bomber? showed on Saturday that he is more than just a one-dimensional slugger. Before he meets Klitschko, look for Wilder to defend his title against fellow undefeated U.S. contender Bryant Jennings in an all-American showdown that could break the bank at the box office.
New year, dynamic new champ ? 2015 is already looking good for the beleaguered heavyweights.
