Adam Kownacki watched Tyson Fury overwhelm Deontay Wilder with pressure toward a rousing seventh-round TKO last month, but he couldn’t help but think that he should have been the one giving “The Bronze Bomber” the business instead.
Wilder sat ringside for both of Kownacki’s fights last year, and the Polish fighter spent 2019 campaigning for a crack at the then-WBC world heavyweight champion. Fury just got in front of Wilder quicker and deployed that pressure strategy during their rematch ... and Kownacki has to live with it.
“You want to beat the man,” Kownacki told DAZN News on Wednesday. “I feel like (Wilder) would have a lot of trouble with my pressure, which came to be true after Tyson Fury (beat him) a couple of Saturdays ago.”
While that opportunity might have slipped past him, all isn’t lost for the undefeated heavyweight. Kownacki faces veteran Robert Helenius (29-3, 18 KOs) in a WBA title eliminator in the main event from Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Saturday night. The WBA title is held by unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, signaling that an impressive win from Kownacki this weekend would inch him one step closer to vying for AJ’s three world titles at once.
Perhaps it’s apropos that Kownacki eventually gets a shot at Joshua. Last year, Joshua was supposed to face Jarrell Miller on June 1, but Miller’s failed drug tests had the champ’s team scrambling to find a new opponent on short notice. They approached Kownacki, but the Polish heavyweight turned down the potentially life-altering fight because his conditioning simply wasn’t there at the time.
“The opportunity came to fight Joshua, but I was totally out of shape,” Kownacki admitted.
Andy Ruiz Jr. wound up replacing Miller instead, and the rest is history, as he shocked the world with a seventh-round TKO of Joshua to become the new world heavyweight unified champion. Kownacki left the situation with a painful, yet invaluable experience.
“Right now, I just feel like you got to be in shape all year round because you never know when you’re going to get the opportunity to fight for a world title,” he said. “You have to keep focused and continue learning and keep getting better.”
Making a Joshua-Kownacki fight has its hurdles considering Joshua is with Matchroom Boxing and Kownacki is a PBC fighter. A more seamless fight to make would be Kownacki vs. Ruiz, as both boxers are represented by PBC. As this fight week progresses, there has been an uptick of rumors saying that Kownacki vs. the former world champion could be announced. For what it’s worth, Ruiz took to his Twitter account Monday and teased a “big announcement.”
Ruiz hasn't fought since losing the unified heavyweight crown back to Joshua in December, but he has been eyeing a return to the ring this summer. The fight would also make sense since Joshua is tied up in a June 20 mandatory title defense against Kubrat Pulev and will likely look to face the Fury-Wilder trilogy bout winner thereafter. Kownacki isn’t going to wait around the rest of the year.
On paper, a Kownacki vs. Ruiz bout is intriguing, given both boxers’ ability to live in the phone booth and do damage inside; Ruiz with his quick hands and Kownacki with his deceptive boxing skills and thudding power.
“I think my style is very uncomfortable,” Kownacki said. “I bring a lot of pressure, so people have a lot of trouble dealing with that pressure. You have to be in very good shape to be able to compete with me.”
To the latter warning, Kownacki has shown the ability to stay in an opponent’s chest like an unmovable object, daring to be budged.
Kownacki (20-0, 15 KOs) is coming off a unanimous decision over Chris Arreola in August in a slugfest that had both boxers combining for the most punches ever in a heavyweight fight.
This nationally-televised card marks Kownacki’s fifth straight and 10 overall fight at Barclays Center in his hometown of Brooklyn, where his fan following seemingly swells with each appearance. He’s hopeful that an emphatic win Saturday night makes his profile balloon that much more.
“I think I’m up there,” Kownacki said of his placement amongst the best heavyweights. “With this fight, I’m definitely going to fight somebody from the Top 10 or get a title shot, so I could make a bigger statement (next). With Al Haymon’s PBC, I’m on a perfect platform fighting on FOX.
“I have to continue winning, continue to put on good fights and it’s going to grow,” the 30-year-old said of his stature in the division and sport. “I’m going to prove that I’m the best heavyweight out there.”