Philippines, 13 Sep 2025
  Home >> News

 


BOXERS

CURRENT CHAMPIONS 

FORMER CHAMPIONS   

RATINGS                       

NEWS           

FORUM        

FIGHT GALLERIES        

RING CARD GIRLS        


 
 
News  


Wilder vs. Zhang: Winner Moves On, Loser Goes Home


PhilBoxing.com





This Saturday’s DAZN PPV main event between Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang is truly a winner moves on, loser goes home scenario. Both fighters are clearly on a downslide in their respected careers. Both fighters recently took a loss to Joseph Parker. Zhang did show more spunk scoring two knockdowns. This pair of boxers will have us on the edge of our seats wondering when the night ending punch will land. That said the styles may also produce a very slow fight while we wait for the spark.

Wilder in his last outing back in December admitted he couldn’t pull the trigger when the openings were presented. The question remains will he ever be able to pull the trigger on the contender level. Now of course we must add context to what occurred in the ring. No doubt about it Wilder did not have his timing and looked sluggish missing badly with his punches. The ‘Bronze Bomber’ had fought less than one round in a span of more than two years. Another troubling item is Wilder saying he will retire if he lost which gives off one foot in, one foot out vibes.

Regardless boxing has a way of exposing the truth inside the ropes so if too much rust was the main reason we should get a sharper Wilder. One thing that is undeniable, Deontay took a lot of punishment in those Tyson Fury fights. His punch resistance like Fury’s seems to be in decline. They say the last thing to go is a boxer’s power and there are plenty of examples throughout the history of the sport. Wilder didn’t take a ton of damage versus Parker and reportedly went in to the gym working on getting his timing back.

Last year Zhilei Zhang stopped Joe Joyce not once but twice and was on top of the world. Many saw him as a darkhorse to make even more noise in the division. Zhang refused to do enough follow up attack when he had Joseph Parker on the canvas in rounds 3 and 8. Probably because he didn’t want to gas out and figured he would just catch Parker with more damaging shots. As we know Zhang is very dangerous in the first part of the bout but as the rounds go on he becomes less and less of a threat to knock out his opponent.

This fight will come down to who is the more washed combatant. If Wilder can stay upright for 6 or 7 rounds his chances vastly improve to win this fight. Of course with the power Wilder posses in his right hand he could end the fight at anytime. So if it’s true that the long time out of the ring was the main reason for the poor performance against Parker this boxing podcaster would favor Wilder by KO. The reality is Deontay can have that power but he needs to be able to deliver it accurately.

From a technical aspect Zhang has the advantage. Because Zhang at least show way more life versus Parker it’s difficult not to side with him to defeat Wilder on Saturday. As far as a betting angle there is plus numbers available whether were talking stoppages or going the distance. If this fight happened with both men in their prime this boxing junkie would pick Wilder. +1000 for Wilder by decision is still worth a flyer. Hopefully we get an entertaining scrap filled with ebbs and flows.

My Official Prediction is Zhilei Zhang by Decision. (Possible late TKO)

Side Note: Can’t wait for Raymond Ford vs. Nick Bell will come down to how Ford’s body handles the weight. Hrgovic vs. Dubois, Sheeraz vs. Williams, and Hutchinson vs. Richards along with Dmitry Bivol vs. Malik Zinad fill out the rest of the PPV card. My Picks: Ford MD, Hrgovic UD, Sheeraz KO, and Hutchinson UD.

Written by Chris Carlson Host/Producer of The Rope A Dope Radio Podcast Available at www.blogtalkradio.com/ropeadoperadio Follow on Twitter @RopeADopeRadio


Click here to view a list of other articles written by Chris Carlson.


Recent PhilBoxing.com In-House articles:

  • WEIGHTS FROM LAS VEGAS: CANELO - 167.5 LBS., CRAWFORD - 167.5 LBS.
    By Dong Secuya, , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • BELFAST: WEIGH-IN RESULTS AND FIGHT NIGHT RUNNING ORDER
    , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • Canoy cancels title fight due to child’s death
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • Vietnam’s Pool Revolution: Hanoi Open Pool Championship
    , Sat, 13 Sep 2025
  • SUNDAY: Naoya Inoue vs. Murodjon Akhmadaliev Undisputed Super Bantamweight Showdown to Stream Exclusively on Top Rank’s Facebook Channel in the U.S. & UK
    , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • National Shelter Month Run on October 25 in DGT
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • Canelo-Crawford: Betting Odds Reveal a Battle of Money vs. Public Opinion
    By Dong Secuya, , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • BELFAST PRESS CONFERENCE: EVERYTHING LEWIS CROCKER AND PADDY DONOVAN SAID AHEAD OF HISTORIC WORLD TITLE SHOWDOWN
    , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • GABRIELA “SWEET POISON” FUNDORA TO DEFEND UNDISPUTED CROWN AGAINST HIGHLY RANKED NEW FOE ALEXAS “IRON LADY” KUBICKI
    , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • Chino Sy Tancontian is Sports Hero of the Year 2025
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Fri, 12 Sep 2025
  • Two (or Three) Lefts Make a Right: Francisco Guilledo to Luisito Espinosa
    By Emmanuel Rivera, RRT, , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • Yoseline Perez Advances to 2025 World Boxing Championships Semifinals
    , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • UNIFIED WORLD CHAMPION OSCAR COLLAZO HOSTS MEDIA WORKOUT
    , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • Jerwin Ancajas Set for IBF Mandatory Eliminator Against Former World Champ Ryosuke Nishida; Winner Fights Naoya Inoue
    By Carlos Costa, , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • “Night of Champions” Returns to Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando on September 19
    , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • Local Favorite Bryce Mills Tops First Boxing Card At del Lago Resort & Casino
    , Thu, 11 Sep 2025
  • Round 12 with Mauricio Sulaiman: It´s Fightweek Fight: Canelo vs. Crawford
    By Mauricio Sulaimán, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Casimero comeback next month in Kyrgyzstan?
    By Nick Giongco, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Team USA Concludes Day Six of 2025 World Boxing Championships
    , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Andrade, Garras rule Milo marathon in Tagum
    , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • CROCKER-DONOVAN II: INSIDE LOOK AT FIRST FACE-OFF IN BELFAST
    , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Former Panamanian WBA champ Jorge Lujan hospitalized
    By Gabriel F. Cordero, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Southern Sports Heroes Night on Sept. 28
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • ABAP feels WB’s growing pains
    By Joaquin Henson, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025
  • Laurente is new Philippine super featherweight champ
    By Lito delos Reyes, , Wed, 10 Sep 2025




  •  



     
    PhilBoxing.com has been created to support every aspiring
    Filipino boxer and the Philippine boxing scene in general.
    Please send comments to feedback@philboxing.com


    PRIVATE POLICY | LEGAL DISCLAIMER
    developed and maintained by dong secuya
    © 2025 philboxing.com.