The first press conference between Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury ahead of their December 1 pay-per-view bout was anything but civil.
The two undefeated heavyweights met in the first of three pressers with the first one taking place in London with the next two taking place in New York and Los Angeles. The first meeting between the two saw them get physical and taunt each other with their own version of mental warfare.
The press conference started off with Fury already taking offense to the fact that he was being called “the challenger” to Wilder’s WBC heavyweight title. Fury then stated his intent of knocking out Wilder when the two fight later this year.
"I am no challenger for no man. I am the lineal heavyweight champion of the world... Do you know what? I'm savoring nothing. The only thing I am savoring is smashing Deontay Wilder's teeth in," Fury said.
But perhaps the highlight of the press conference was Fury getting up from his chair and goading Wilder to show off his power. Wilder did get up from his seat to face Fury and even shoved the former unified heavyweight champion. This caused nearly a dozen officials, including Fury’s promoter Frank Warren, to get between them and prevent the situation from getting any bigger.
This is Fury’s first world heavyweight title fight since upsetting Wladimir Klitschko in 2015 to win the WBA, WBO, IBF, lineal and Ring Magazine titles. Fury would end vacating or getting stripped of all but the lineal title and a win over Wilder would net Fury the one world heavyweight title he has yet to win.
The fight between Wilder and Fury is set to headline Showtime’s first pay-per-view event since August 2017 and will take place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, marking the third time a boxing card has been held at the venue in 2018.
