Tyson Fury is expecting a dangerous version of Deontay Wilder when the heavyweight pair meet later this month.
With Fury the dominant figure in the series so far, Wilder will have to make multiple adjustments to succeed in their third fight, and the biggest one he has made so far is appointing former heavyweight contender Malik Scott as his trainer.
Wilder had been mainly anonymous since losing to Fury in February of last year, but he provided a timely reminder of his presence earlier this year when an arbiter ruled that the Alabama man was entitled to a trilogy encounter with his most recent conqueror.
That decision extinguished all of Fury’s negotiations with Anthony Joshua, and with the WBC champion now focused on Wilder, he says the former champion shouldn’t be disregarded.
“He still hasn’t moved on from defeat,” said Fury when speaking to Gareth Davies. “That’s what I think is happening with Wilder. But he’s not to be underestimated. He’s got nothing to lose and everything to gain.
“He’s the one that’s coming off a knockout loss and one-sided fight. He’s the one who’s got to tell himself all these reasons why he lost and sack everybody on his time and blame everybody and point the finger. If you’re an alcoholic or drugs addict, the only way you can actually move on from that is acceptance.”