Former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder has insisted that he remains just one victory away from securing a shot at unified world champion Oleksandr Usyk, despite a string of defeats.
Wilder, 40, lost his long-held WBC belt to Tyson Fury in 2020 and has since suffered additional setbacks against Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang. Nevertheless, the American knockout artist is adamant that a return to title contention is not only possible but imminent.
“It can happen and it will happen,” Wilder said. “As long as I have the confidence to do what I have to do, it will happen. Unless he retires and if so, that’s fine with me. I must accomplish what I set forth in the beginning of my career.”
Usyk, the Ukrainian master who currently holds the WBC, WBA, and IBF heavyweight championships, has previously expressed interest in facing Wilder. At one stage, the contest appeared close to being finalised. Deontay Wilderbelieves those discussions can still bear fruit.
“Why not make goals while you’re inside of the ring? I have. Unifying the division would be an overwhelming feeling for me. That’s something that I never had the opportunity to have.”
When asked how close he is to challenging Usyk, Wilder responded without hesitation: “I’m most definitely one win away [from Usyk]. I hear a lot of things. I don’t keep up with too much. I hear he wants to fight me and then all of a sudden he doesn’t want to fight me. You really don’t know what to believe when you’re in the business of boxing.”
While Usyk has not officially confirmed any future opponent, Wilder’s camp remains confident that a single convincing victory would position the former champion as a mandatory challenger or a high-profile voluntary defence for the unified titleholder.