For as impressive as Joseph Parker was in his upset win against Deontay Wilder on December 23rd, Wilder looked a shadow of the devastating force he once was.
And on of the UK’s top trainers has blasted The Bronze Bomber for both his performance against Parker and the post fight explanation he provided for the sub par showing.
Shelley Finkel, Wilder’s manager, reportedly told Frank Warren that his charge was negatively impacted on the by spending too long in a cryo therapy chamber in the weeks leading up to the bout.
Billy Nelson, however, does not buy the excuse for one second, branding it “a load of s***.”
In a recent interview with IFL TV, Nelson stated:
“I don’t think Joseph [Parker] was fantastic, Wilder was just really poor. His feet were all over the place.”
“He’s a big puncher – how does he expect to generate that power on the back foot.”
“Then he comes out with another s*** excuse, that he was in a cryo chamber too long. What the f*** are you doing in a cryo chamber so close to a fight? What are you doing?”
“It was the 70lb outfit he wore on the way to the ring for the second fight against Tyson, wasn’t it? What a load of s***.”
So poor was Wilder against Parker that question marks have been raised over whether or not fans will ever see him in the ring again, with the former world champion himself admitting that retirement was a possibility.
He had agreed terms for a long awaited fight with Anthony Joshua in Saudi Arabia for next year, however defeat to Parker saw the showdown with Joshua go up in smoke.
This ringside view of Joseph Parker going 𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗴𝗲 on Deontay Wilder is a must watch 🤯#DayOfReckoning pic.twitter.com/z3Urljobmo
— Boxing on TNT Sports (@boxingontnt) December 24, 2023
There is a view that Wilder’s trilogy with Tyson Fury, particularly the gruelling second and third fights, have taken a lot from him.
Whatever the rhyme or reason behind it, it would it take a brave man to bet on the American, now approaching 40 years of age, successfully scaling to the heavyweight summit once again.
