Down and out Former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder and operator Curtis Harper have signed contracts for a fight on April 26 to be shown on BLK Prime from Atlanta.
Wilder vs. Harper
Harper, 36, has some pop in his fists, which makes him a threat to beat the gunshy, chinny ‘Bronze Bomber’ Wilder. A knockout loss to Harper would be seen as the end for Deontay. Losing at this level of fighting 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 this fight. It’s a desperate situation for Deontay, as he hasn’t won a fight in three years since 2022 and has been beaten in four of his last five fights.
Deontay’s last five fights:
- Zhilei Zhang: TKO 5 losses
- Joseph Parker: UD 12 loss
- Robert Helenius: KO 1 win
- Tyson Fury: KO 11 loss
- 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 he was at the height of his career.
In the 6’7″ Bronze Bomber’s last fight, he was brutally defeated in the fifth round by two-time Olympian Zhilei Zhang on June 1, 2024, in Riyadh.
Turki Al-Sheikh had not given up on Wilder despite his previous fight on one of his Riyadh cards in a one-sided 12-round unanimous decision loss to Joseph Parker on December 23, 2023. Interestingly, Deontay was not included in the massive February 22 of Turki. event in Riyadh. Did he give up on him?
Deontay seemed shy and afraid to throw punches in his losses to Zhang and Parker. He mostly held on, sitting as if to launch, but not letting go of his hands. The question is whether it is due to his trainer, Malik Scott, or to his age. It could also be that Wilder’s two KO losses to Tyson Fury have made him gunshy, afraid to throw for fear of being countered. That’s how Fury beat him.
Harper’s Big Shot
Harper was busy in 2024, winning four fights against obscure second-tier opposition. In 2023, he fought three times, losing to Richard Torrez, Guido Vianello and Damian Knyba. Harper made it to the eighth round against the heavy puncher Torrez before being stopped.
If he can land that long against Wilder, he has an excellent chance of beating him because it won’t take much to knock down the Bronze Bomber today. The Fury slapper stopped him twice, and he couldn’t get out of a wet paper bag.
If everything goes wrong for Deontay and he loses, it’s not the end of the world. Yes, it would be indigent in the careerbut he would still have his massive $30 million fortune. That’s reason enough for him to be happy. He got far out of his career with his poor skills and only bazooka in his right hand.
