WBC heavyweight world champion Deontay Wilder came in at the third lightest weight of his professional career ahead of his fight with Cuban Luis Ortiz.
Wilder’s clarified weight came in at bang on 214lbs, not 214.75lbs what announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr called out originally.
For a big heavyweight with a relatively large reach for modern heavyweights, that’s light.
Very light.
To put into perspective, Mike Tyson who was neatly half a foot shorter than Wilder back in his prime used to come in around the 220lbs.
Clearly Wilder is built for speed this weekend against the older fighter in Ortiz.
When asked about coming in so light, Wilder said:
“That don’t mean nothing. I’m going to let the world know that weight that don’t mean a thing. It’s all mental at the end of the day. I’d rather be the part than look the part. I’ve shown y’all many times that no matter what the weight is that I put these guys on their a** and that’s what I come to do on Saturday night. Over and over again my guys have out weighed me – so that’s nothing. That’s nothing to where I came from. That’s nothing compared to where I’m going so come Saturday night. Y’all are in for a treat baby. I can’t wait.”
Weight certainly doesn’t win fights but coming in that light is definitely an indication of just how hard Wilder has trained for this.
Expect fireworks come tomorrow night on Showtime live from New York.