The aroma of fish and chips fills the air, yet the speed of smell is slower than the speed of sound. “BOOOOOOMB SQUAAAAAAAAD!” echoes as Deontay Wilder, with his signature catchphrase, strides through a hallway like he might launch a powerful right hand, followed by a confident grin. Clad in a long brown coat, Wilder moves with long, gangly legs, eating from a cardboard box while his intense eyes peer through sunglasses. Accompanied by a significant group of people, he exudes an undeniable gravitational pull.
Wilder, known for his formidable punches, has made a name for himself as one of the hardest punchers in boxing history. However, his character is complex, marked by increasing excuses as his aggression in the ring has waned. Upon arriving at a press conference with upcoming opponent Derek Chisora, whispers quickly circulate: the 40-year-old American had recently erupted in anger at TalkSport host Simon Jordan at the organization’s office nearby. A PR representative then issued a clear directive: “Do not ask Deontay about Tyson Fury.”
Jordan’s mention of Wilder’s ongoing excuses for his two losses to Fury, five years after the latter defeat, had sparked a strong reaction. Wilder stood up, slowly approached Jordan, and security intervened before he left the room. By the time we speak to Wilder, he has calmed down and is in a reflective, philosophical mood. He discusses friends, foes, fighting Chisora, and even fish and chips—but not Fury.
Chisora, who will be Wilder’s opponent at the O2 Arena on April 4, falls into both categories of friend and foe. “Derek asked me, ‘You want some proper fish and chips? Let’s get some,’” Wilder recalls. “I like it. It’s not my favorite, but I’ll eat it sometimes. And then there’s my lady, this is her first time here, so I wanted her to try something different.”
This is Wilder’s second fight in the UK, 13 years after a win over Audley Harrison in Sheffield. “I met some beautiful people [on that trip], and I still have friendships today,” he says. “Most of the time when I come here, I reconnect with old friends. Even when I’m not here, we still talk, FaceTime, back in those days you had Skype. Here I am again, over a decade later.”
Over a decade later, yes, but not necessarily at the end of a storied boxing career. Britain’s Chisora, 42, insists he will retire regardless of Saturday’s outcome; Wilder, despite four losses in his last six bouts, seems determined to continue.
Regardless, he is happy to discuss the past, present, and future. Reflecting on his origins in boxing, he says: “First of all, I wanted to take care of my daughter, and then be a champion. The only reason I got into this was to risk my life to save a life. Now, [my family] are taken care of. Even when I die, they’ll be taken care of too.”
At this point, I notice text on his top reads: “Better with age, aged to perfection.” Still, “I don’t strive to be perfect,” he says. “That’s walking a thin line. If everyone was perfect, this world would be boring, it wouldn’t have chaos. I do try to live a righteous life, but I love age, I’ve always been a person who loves age. As I get older, I think everything becomes better.”
Yet one thing that hasn’t necessarily improved, in Wilder’s view, is the state of boxing. He expresses this in an unprompted monologue about the sport, which he views differently from Chisora (minutes after meeting Wilder, Chisora tells us of his “love” for this “scumbag sport,” hinting at similar issues but from a different perspective).
“When I first got into this business, it was very exciting,” Wilder begins. “Because I only knew what I would hear and see. As you go along, you see a lot of things behind closed doors. I didn’t know who was taking from these fighters, it just makes you feel bad and sad. It’s like: ‘Damn, these motherf*s are lying to you, manipulating you.’ And that’s why I say boxing mostly consists of criminals and w*es, that’s just the God-honest truth.”
“You’ve just got to know how to work it. You think you know a person until you know a person, and what would bring the truth out of a person? Money, because the love of money is the root of all evil. Everybody’s got an agenda, and unfortunately it doesn’t feel good when someone has an agenda and says they love you, they’re sitting at the table with you and your children, eating your food, staying at your house, but at the same time they’re stealing from you.
“You’ve got to be careful who you trust, because how they are now, they could be different 5-10 years later. Everybody changes, even our taste buds change every 10 years.”
Wilder has changed over the last 10 years. While he still shouts about his “Bomb Squad!!!”, he throws fewer bombs. Against Chisora, that could be a big problem.
