NEW YORK -- The rivalry and hatred between Deontay Wilder and Dominic Breazeale started in 2017. That's when Breazeale and Wilder's brother had an altercation at one of Wilder's fights. Let led to a very public dispute between Wilder and his crew and Breazeale and his in the lobby of an Alabama hotel. Neither man has done much to quell that animosity and recently Wilder has talked about wanting a body on his resume, seemingly referring to killing Breazeale in the ring. On May 18 on Showtime the two rivals will finally get to settle their beef in the ring with Wilder putting his WBC heavyweight title on the line as he looks to make the eighth defense of that title.
Wilder (40-0-1, 39 KOs) remains the most dangerous puncher in boxing. It really doesn't matter how far behind he gets on the cards because he can end fights at any moment if he lands his right hand. The 6-feet, 7-inch Wilder is an athletic heavyweight who relies on his jab to set up his offense. The jab from Wilder isn't used to score as much as it's used to measure the distance for his lights out right hand. When Wilder can't get the jab going he often can't land his right hand consistently. When Wilder is finding a home for his jab though usually plenty of powerful right hands follow. He has also been developing his left hook which he used more than usual in his last fight against Tyson Fury. That punch is still far from a finished product but he has shown improvement with it. Wilder does have some bad habits to go along with that power. He tends to back straight up with his hands down or straight up in the air and often gets wild with his punches, especially when he has his opponent hurt. Wilder has been able to overcome all of those flaws though because of his tremendous power.
In 2015 Wilder won the WBC title by beating Bermane Stiverne by the way of unanimous decision. That remains the only fight of Wilder's career that didn't end in a knockout or see Wilder's opponent touch the canvas. Since winning that title Wilder has defended it successfully seven times. Among his victims in those seven fights were fighters like Artur Szpilka, Chris Arreola, Luis Ortiz, and a rematch with Bermane Stiverne that ended in a first round knockout. The two best opponents of Wilder's career both gave him issues. First it was Ortiz who looked to have Wilder out on his feet and seemed to be on the verge of stopping him until Wilder recovered and ended up dropping him twice in the 10th round for the stoppage victory. In that fight he actually dropped Ortiz three times. Then came his fight with Fury, the only blemish and his otherwise perfect record. Fury boxed very well in that fight and Wilder had a difficult time finding a home for his right hand. However, in the ninth round he dropped Fury and in the 12th round he seemed to knock him out cold before Fury's eyes opened and he seemingly rose from the dead. Those knockdowns were enough to give Wilder the draw but if he wants to take on Fury again, or challenge Anthony Joshua, he will first need to handle business against Breazeale.
Usually Wilder enjoys a size advantage over his opponents but that won't be the case against Breazeale (20-1, 18 KOs) who is the same height as the champion. Above all else Breazeale is known for his heart. He's the type of fighter who gets off the canvas to fight on and never packs it in. The California native also has good pop on his punches. Breazeale also likes to use his jab as a measuring stick for a strong right hand and while that right hand can do serious damage it doesn't carry as much power as Wilder's. Breazeale is not without flaws though. He has a bad chin and is pretty heavy on his feet. Having a bad chin against any fighter is a bad thing but when you have a weak chin and enter the ring with Wilder it's a recipe for disaster.
There are three fighters at the top of the heavyweight division and those fighters are Wilder, Fury, and Joshua. Breazeale has already been in the ring with one of them when he fought Joshua in 2016. Breazeale was never really in that fight and was dropped twice in the seventh before the fight was stopped. He was also dropped by Amir Mansour in a fight that he looked like he was on his way to losing before Mansour suffered an injury and didn't come out for the sixth round. In recent fights Breazeale has looked good, beating Eric Molina and Carlos Negron, stopping both before the 10th round. He also beat Izuagbe Ugonoh but was dropped early in that fight.
This fight will be a battle of right hands. Both Wilder and Breazeale's best punch is their right hand and both will be looking to take the other's head off with it. Breazeale can't afford to just stand and trade with Wilder though because Wilder has the better chin and better power. This fight really could end up being all Wilder. He has the better chin, is the bigger puncher, and has faced better opponents. Wilder has shown that he can take a punch from a guy like Ortiz while Breazeale consistently finds himself on the canvas. Sometimes it's smart to bet on the underdog but that won't be the case with this fight. All Wilder needs to do is stay in control. He seems to truly hate Breazeale but he needs to be careful not to go in their too wild just looking for the early knockout.
PREDICTION: This fight is not going to go well for Dominic Breazeale. He isn't a bad fighter but he doesn't hit as hard as Deontay Wilder and his chin is weak. A fighter like Wilder feasts on guys with bad chins and after a shaky start where Wilder is a bit too wild he will settle down and knock Breazeale out in the seventh round.
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| Wilder sending Tyson Fury to the canvas |
In 2015 Wilder won the WBC title by beating Bermane Stiverne by the way of unanimous decision. That remains the only fight of Wilder's career that didn't end in a knockout or see Wilder's opponent touch the canvas. Since winning that title Wilder has defended it successfully seven times. Among his victims in those seven fights were fighters like Artur Szpilka, Chris Arreola, Luis Ortiz, and a rematch with Bermane Stiverne that ended in a first round knockout. The two best opponents of Wilder's career both gave him issues. First it was Ortiz who looked to have Wilder out on his feet and seemed to be on the verge of stopping him until Wilder recovered and ended up dropping him twice in the 10th round for the stoppage victory. In that fight he actually dropped Ortiz three times. Then came his fight with Fury, the only blemish and his otherwise perfect record. Fury boxed very well in that fight and Wilder had a difficult time finding a home for his right hand. However, in the ninth round he dropped Fury and in the 12th round he seemed to knock him out cold before Fury's eyes opened and he seemingly rose from the dead. Those knockdowns were enough to give Wilder the draw but if he wants to take on Fury again, or challenge Anthony Joshua, he will first need to handle business against Breazeale.
Usually Wilder enjoys a size advantage over his opponents but that won't be the case against Breazeale (20-1, 18 KOs) who is the same height as the champion. Above all else Breazeale is known for his heart. He's the type of fighter who gets off the canvas to fight on and never packs it in. The California native also has good pop on his punches. Breazeale also likes to use his jab as a measuring stick for a strong right hand and while that right hand can do serious damage it doesn't carry as much power as Wilder's. Breazeale is not without flaws though. He has a bad chin and is pretty heavy on his feet. Having a bad chin against any fighter is a bad thing but when you have a weak chin and enter the ring with Wilder it's a recipe for disaster.
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| Breazeale punishing Carlos Negron with a right hand |
This fight will be a battle of right hands. Both Wilder and Breazeale's best punch is their right hand and both will be looking to take the other's head off with it. Breazeale can't afford to just stand and trade with Wilder though because Wilder has the better chin and better power. This fight really could end up being all Wilder. He has the better chin, is the bigger puncher, and has faced better opponents. Wilder has shown that he can take a punch from a guy like Ortiz while Breazeale consistently finds himself on the canvas. Sometimes it's smart to bet on the underdog but that won't be the case with this fight. All Wilder needs to do is stay in control. He seems to truly hate Breazeale but he needs to be careful not to go in their too wild just looking for the early knockout.
PREDICTION: This fight is not going to go well for Dominic Breazeale. He isn't a bad fighter but he doesn't hit as hard as Deontay Wilder and his chin is weak. A fighter like Wilder feasts on guys with bad chins and after a shaky start where Wilder is a bit too wild he will settle down and knock Breazeale out in the seventh round.
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