Down and out former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder and journeyman Curtis Harper have reportedly signed contracts for an April 26 fight to be shown on Atlanta’s BLK Prime.
Wilder vs. Harper
Harper, 36, has some punch to his punches, which makes him a threat to beat the handsome, warty ‘Bronze Bomber’ Wilder. A knockout loss to Harper would have to be seen as the end for Deontay. A loss to this level of fighter would signal that the Alabama native is not capable of being a major player in the division.
Lance Pugmire reports that the 39-year-old Wilder (43-4-1, 42 KOs) and Harper (18-11, 12 KOs) have signed contracts for the fight. It’s a desperate situation for Deontay, as he hasn’t won a fight in three years since 2022 and has been defeated in four of his last five fights.
Deontay’s last five fights:
- Zhilei Zhang: TKO 5 defeats
- Joseph Parker: UD 12 loss
- Robert Helenius: KO 1 win
- Tyson Fury: defeat KO 11
- Tyson Fury: TKO 7 loss
Many fans feel that Wilder should retire already. From 2012 to 2018, he looked like a shadow of the fighter who was at the zenith of his career.
In the 6’7″ tall bronze bomber’s last fight, he was viciously knocked out in the fifth round by two-time Olympian Zhilei Zhang on June 1, 2024 in Riyadh.
Turki Al-Sheikh he didn’t give up on Wilder despite coming up short in his previous fight on one of his cards in Riyadh in a one-sided 12-round unanimous decision loss to Joseph Parker on December 23, 2023. Interestingly, Deontay was not involved in Turkey’s massive fight on the 22nd. February event in Riyadh. Did he give up on him?
Deontay looked timid and afraid to strike in his losses to Zhang and Parker. He mostly held back, pretending to throw, but not letting go of his hands. The question is whether that’s because of his coach, Malik Scott, or his age. It could also be that Wilder’s two knockout losses to Tyson Fury made him fiery, afraid of throwing for fear of being countered. That’s how Fury defeated him.
Harper’s Big Shot
Harper has been busy in 2024, winning four fights against obscure second division opposition. In 2023, he fought three times, losing to Richard Torrez, Guido Vianello and Damian Knibba. Harper made it to the eighth round against a hard-hitting Torrez before being stopped.
If he can land that long against Wilder, he has an excellent chance of beating him because it doesn’t take much to knock out the Bronze Bomber nowadays. Fury stopped him twice and couldn’t get out of the wet paper bag.
If things go wrong for Deontay and he loses, it’s not the end of the world. Yes, it would be poor in careerbut he would still have his whopping $30 million fortune. That’s reason enough to be happy. He got a lot out of his career with his meager skills and just a right handed bazooka.
