Deontay Wilder’s confidence and comeback were snatched from him by a resurgent Joseph Parker, who beat the American over twelve rounds in Saudi Arabia.
Wilder looked a shadow of his former dangerous self, and was instead the one on the receiving end of the power punches. Parker won near every round, and even came close to a stoppage in the eighth.
Hall of Fame fighter Tim Bradley didn’t hold back in his assessment of his countryman. Speaking on Pro Box TV, he said the performance was ‘terrible.’
“Man, I’m just gonna tell you this. Wilder looked terrible. Terrible. I don’t know if it was something mental. It could be the fact that Joseph Parker has teamed up with Fury, maybe he was thinking about that, maybe he thought that Joseph Parker had something for him. But Joseph Parker to me was posturing. He was acting like he was gonna do something. Setting things up, looking for the big overhand right.
One of the things I did notice was Parker was standing his ground but on the outside. Either all the way in, or all the way out. When he was on the outside he was being extremely patient. He was testing the patience of Deontay Wilder.”
Bradley also took aim at Wilder’s former opponent and trainer, Malik Scott.
“Usually what happens is Deontay Wilder shoots that double jab, adjusts his feet then comes back with the right hand. He didn’t do it as often because he was afraid of what was going to happen to him because Joseph Parker was being extremely patient.”
“Ultimately, I’ll just tell you this. The game-plan from Deontay Wilder from the beginning was trash. I know Malik Scott, good dude, knows boxing … but this game-plan that I saw from Deontay Wilder – backing up, using his feet, lateral movement, for what? For what, Deontay Wilder? For what, Malik Scott? To beat a Joseph Parker you have to take it to him.”
The 38-year-old has confirmed he will fight on, although who he’ll face remains to be seen.