Deontay Wilder Returns To Fight Robert Helenius

Heavyweight Deontay Wilder will this Saturday return to action to fight Finland’s Robert Helenius almost a year to the day since his last fight – an epic trilogy encounter with Tyson Fury.

Wilder, 36, seriously considered retirement during the past 12 months but eventually signed on to fight Helenius at the Barclays Center in New York.

With question marks hanging over his motivation, his trainer Malik Scott says the Alabama native is as driven now as he has ever been.

“He still has a fighting dark spirit when he’s in the ring,” said Scott.

“That’s what I like, because once that evilness and meanness leave – that is the point to retire.”

After successive stoppage defeats to Fury, Wilder had to rediscover his passion for the sport again.

The defeats to Fury were the first of Wilder’s previously unblemished career and stripped him of the WBC title he had held since 2015. They also carried the added shock of being back-to-back stoppages.

Uncertain future

In the months that followed the trilogy bout on 9 October 2021, Wilder’s future appeared uncertain after he lost his passion for the sport.

He explained: “I went to the gym a couple of times to try and get that feeling. I couldn’t find it. That feeling wasn’t there no more.”

Wilder – who became a fighter to financially support his daughter, who has had the spinal defect spina bifida all her life – looked ready to bow out.

“We all thought ‘that’s it’ – he did not want to watch boxing, he didn’t want to be around boxing,” Scott continued. “I really did not know.

“It was 50-50 because Deontay really was not interested in boxing. Up until the statue was revealed, I was very unsure.”

The statue to which Scott refers is a life-size bronze figure of Wilder that was erected in his hometown of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in May this year.

The public art moved Wilder to reconsider his future in the ring.

“That was the first time I saw him smile from ear-to-ear since we were getting ready to fight Fury for a third time,” said Scott.

“He was smiling, laughing and giggling all in this one smile and I hadn’t seen that since the last training camp.

“He just told us ‘all right’ then and there in front of the whole crowd that he won’t be retiring.

“After the statue was revealed, it hit a spark and it’s been lit ever since. About an hour later he was talking about training camps and opponents.”

BBC/Samuel Isaiah