Sports do not build character. They reveal it.??Jimmy Cannon
WBC heavyweight world champion Deontay Wilder has been building the gate for tonight?s fight at Brooklyn?s Barclays Center against Dominic Breazeale. There?s nothing wrong with building the gate, but by emulating the worst qualities, instead of the best, of the boxers we respect, it may come back to haunt him in unforeseen ways.
It?s within the realm of possibility that someday Wilder?s wish may come true. He may get the ?body on my record? he desires. And while he is following in the footsteps of other tough guys like Mike Tyson (?I want to eat his children?) and Roberto Duran (?I will make his trembling wife a widow?) who trash-talked their opponents, few are amused at his verbal gymnastics, and making excuses for the Alabaman is the fallback position for his fans. But even WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman, who presumably knows a thing or two about how dangerous the sport can be, has criticized Wilder?s comments as unbefitting a WBC champion.
?I have seen Deontay Wilder comments which are regrettable and completely against the spirit of our sport,? said Sulaiman. ?I have known Wilder for a long time and he is not the person he portrays in such comments. His metaphors are against the WBC code of ethics and will be addressed in a hearing.?
Wilder may not be ?the person he portrays in such comments,? but there?s a dark side to Wilder worth considering.
In 2014 he sucker punched an internet troll named Charlie Zelenoff. Everyone has dreamed of flattening an internet troll, yet most of us show restraint. But Wilder doesn?t know from restraint and pest removal is no more part of his job description than managing another man?s anger is part of mine.
Wilder was out of line. Maybe he was having a bad day. It happens. Maybe he deserves the benefit of the doubt, such as that doubt is. But to suggest it was a one-off is belied by his history.
A year before his knockout of the internet troll, Wilder had another run-in, this time with a female, and violence, provoked or otherwise, was Wilder?s default position.
It happened in a Las Vegas hotel room in 2013 when Wilder, after beating a woman of supposedly low repute, was charged with domestic violence/strangulation when he thought she was stealing from him.
?Deontay instinctively acted under the false impression that someone was stealing from him,? Paul Patterson, Wilder?s attorney at the time, told the Tuscaloosa News. ?That wasn?t the case. He regrets his actions. He is extremely regretful because this is not consistent with his reputation.
?He and the victim have spoken about this and the victim has accepted his apology. We hope this matter will be brought to a resolution soon.?
I recall seeing a photo of the victim and she looked like hell. With her broken nose, swollen eyebrows, cut lip, and ominous red marks around her neck, she looked like Billy Collins Jr. after his last fight. The victim was taken to University Medical Center of Southern Nevada and treated for her injuries, none of which were life threatening. Under the circumstances, more power to her for accepting ?his apology.? No reveal of money to buy her silence was reported in the press and the incident was unceremoniously buried.
And so it continues.
?Dominic Breazeale asked for this,? Wilder said. ?I didn?t go seek him, he sought me, so if [death] comes, it comes. This is a brutal sport, this is not a gentleman?s sport. I keep saying this is not a gentleman?s sport. We don?t ask to hit each other in the face but we does anyway.
?You can ask any doctor around the world and he?ll tell you the head isn?t supposed to be hit. This is the only sport where you can kill a man and get paid for it at the same time. It?s legal, so why not use my right to do so? His life is on the line for this fight and I do mean his life. I?m still trying to get me a body on my record.?
Breazeale?s trainer, Virgil Hunter, warned Wilder that he is putting his legacy at risk with his ?irresponsible? remarks.
But Wilder is too busy talking to listen.
?I want to hurt Breazeale so bad,? he said. ?So bad, my blood is boiling right now. I can barely keep my composure right now. So with that being said I will keep my composure until that time comes. Come Saturday, I can do whatever I want to do. You better gather around your loved ones. You all better gather around him tonight because come Saturday night, he may not be able to talk to you. Trust me. You know I don?t play no games.?
Wilder ?don?t play no games.? He said so himself. Why not believe him, even if it upends our preconceptions?
?If anybody thinks this is a game, you better close your eyes when the TV comes on. Or, if you?re there, you better bring your blindfold.
?Because this is gonna be a tragedy. It?s gonna be a tragedy. The least I can do, I can pay for the funeral.?
