Deontay Wilder, Tyson Fury trade barbs, compliments

LOS ANGELES — Undefeated heavyweights Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury stepped onto a makeshift stage inside Fox Studios on Saturday for what was supposed to be a brief faceoff. A Kodak moment of sorts for a national audience and the dozens of reporters in attendance.

Except it wasn’t actually brief.

The two goliaths stoically glared at each other for a minute until Fury finally flashed a faint smile, ending the impromptu staring contest with a victory for Wilder.

“You lost,” Wilder, the WBC champion, proudly announced, because everything is a competition.

Only four more weeks until the real showdown — inside the boxing ring at the MGM Grand Garden.

Wilder (42-0-1, 41 knockouts) and Fury (29-0-1, 20 KOs) continued their promotion with a charismatic, hourlong televised news conference, during which they traded playful barbs and respectful sentiments — a rarity in their rivalry. They fight Feb. 22 in a rematch of their epic, controversial draw in December 2018.

Fury, 31, is predicting a knockout victory.

Wilder, 34, is unsurprisingly predicting the same thing.

“I’m the biggest puncher in probably boxing history, period. We’ve said that many times,” Wilder said in a boastful tone. “And, of course, that would play into my game plan (if he comes) forward into me. I have the power to knock him out. When you’re coming forward, you’re giving me all the momentum I need.”

Fury maintained his bravado and insists he is going to beat Wilder within two rounds. He was knocked down twice by Wilder in their first fight, but rose from the canvas and showcased his superior hand speed, footwork and head movement for the better part of 12 rounds en route to the draw.

Wilder said he doesn’t fear Fury’s power, but acknowledged his boxing skills.

“You can’t have it all,” Wilder said. “I consider Tyson a breath of fresh air for me, especially in the heavyweight division. A lot of the other guys are just stiff. They don’t want to open their mouths. They don’t want to let themselves loose and have fun.”

Fury doubled down on Wilder’s claim that he is indeed the most powerful puncher in the sport’s history and was quite complimentary of his resume, too. He praised his power and honored his 10 title defenses, the last of which came via one-punch knockout in November against Luis Ortiz in Las Vegas.

“Even if I hate this guy, I’ve got to respect that. That is awesome,” said Fury, who last beat Otto Wallin in September in Las Vegas. “He didn’t knock me out. Nearly, not quite there. But Deontay’s got amazing power. … I can’t take anything from him.”

Wilder and Fury are at ease and relaxed ahead of the most consequential heavyweight title fight in almost two decades. They are the world’s two best heavyweights and are in the prime of their careers.

They will train for about four more weeks and gather in Las Vegas with the WBC title on the line. And a little bit of history, too

“It can only go two ways, unless we get a draw again, which I don’t want or he don’t want,” Fury said. “I’m not afraid to go mano a mano with the biggest puncher on the planet. The biggest puncher in heavyweight boxing. I’m going to knock him out, and it’s going to look excellent for me, isn’t it?”

Contact reporter Sam Gordon at sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on Twitter.