Deontay Wilder insists he took his foot off the gas against Derek Chisora this past Saturday.
Wilder and Chisora had quite the showdown inside The O2 Arena in London. Chisora had success early on, but he started to fade down the stretch. While Wilder wasn’t exactly fresh in the later rounds, he did have more in the tank than his opponent.
Amid two knockdowns in favor of Wilder and a point deduction against him, “The Bronze Bomber” earned a split decision victory. This was Chisora’s retirement fight, and Wilder claimed he held back to avoid hurting one of British boxing’s most beloved heavyweights.
During his post-fight interview, Wilder said that he was looking after Chisora’s health when he had him reeling late in the fight (via MMAMania).
“This was his retirement fight, and I as I was telling him in the ring when I started seeing his eyes well, his temple bump a bit I told him,” Wilder explained. “‘Bro you have got to live for your kids, I don’t want to hurt you too much longer.’ So, I started to have fun in there because I saw my brother starting to get hurt.
“I started to see his eyes wince a little bit,” Wilder added. And that is what boxing is all about. Too many lives have been lost in this ring. Nobody give a f*ck about us. Fighters have to look after each other. And tonight, I looked after him tonight. I didn’t wanna go too hard on him because i started to see the veins come out of his head.
“And I want him to live for his kids,” he concluded. “It’s time for us to take care of each other, I have seven kids of my own.”
Many are now left to wonder what’s next for Wilder. The popular thought is a long-awaited grudge match with Anthony Joshua. “AJ” attended the Wilder vs. Chisora fight and crossed paths with “The Bronze Bomber” on Saturday.
Do you believe Deontay Wilder actually took his foot off the gas against Derek Chisora? Sound off in the comments below.