Why you should expect a different Deontay Wilder against Tyson Fury

Deontay Wilder was only 212 pounds against Tyson Fury in their first fight. He tells FanSided why his weight was low and what to expect in the rematch.

Jumping on the scales before his first fight with Tyson Fury in 2018, the scale read 212.5 pounds for the 6-foot-7 WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder. It was a shockingly low number that he doesn’t expect to see again.

To make matters worse, he weighed even less on the day of his bout with Fury. On Saturday, Feb. 22, don’t expect to see Wilder post a second low weight when he steps in the ring against Fury for their highly anticipated rematch.

People forget that boxers, despite their physical gifts, are human and subject to everyday problems the same as anybody else. Wilder is no different. He has stressors in life too. Wilder’s personal life played a role in his low weight against Fury back in December of 2018.

“I had a lot of personal problems going on as well,” Wilder told FanSided. “It’s normal. As a fighter, we have a lot of different things going on. Not just as a fighter, just being a human being, bro. We all go through different problems in our life. One thing that sucks the most is when you have a fight coming up, and you’re going through so many different problems. You have to argue with people whether it’s your spouse or someone else about a situation and s**t like that.”

Wilder’s problems were physical as well as emotional.

“During that time, I had a lot of things going on outside of the ring,” he said. “I also had a lot of things going on inside of the ring because I broke my hand just right at the beginning of camp.”

Wilder added, “I had to endure getting my hand recovered. I had to get through a whole camp fighting guys with one hand because I didn’t want to throw the right hand that often. I felt like if I was going to re-break it again, I was going to do it in the actual fight. At least I knew I was going to get paid and support my family. I’m a fighter. We all go through things, and it’s about how you overcome and handle the situation that makes you a better person.”

FanSided visited Wilder’s camp during his preparation for the first Fury bout. During two days of workouts FanSided attended, he rarely threw his right hand. A slight injury was disclosed at the time, but not the full extent of the damage.

Today, Wilder seems to be in perfect health. He’s taking his nutrition seriously and detailed his daily routine for FanSided.

"We get up at 8 a.m. Eat some breakfast. 9:30 a.m is morning workout, cardio, lifting weights, things like that. After that, go home and eat some more. I have six meals a day that I have to eat throughout the day. I go to the gym and we work on certain things in the gym, preparaton for the fight. I always bring about a different training camp because as the saying has been said, styles make fights. The training is always different depending on the competition that lies at hand. After that, we go back home, eat more and get my body right. I might get into the hyperbaric chamber.  I may get in the jacuzzi. I may do a night jacuzzi for my body to get it ready for the morning."

Wilder and Fury are set to hit the scales on Friday, the day before their Feb. 22 rematch. Coverage of their pay-per-view bout begins at 9 p.m. ET.