Deontay Wilder has a fight reportedly signed for next month, and he spent part of Tuesday talking about a different one. In an interview released by the IBA, the former heavyweight world champion named Murat Gassiev, the current WBA heavyweight titleholder, as the opponent he would most like to face on his return to the ring.
“There is some communication between me and Murat’s team for sure, and I would love that,” Wilder said. “Out of all the choices, I would love for that one to go. He’s a great guy, a great champion. He’s been to my camps before, and we’ve sparred. To see him as a champion is well deserved.”
The timing is awkward. On Monday, Bloody Elbow, citing Boxing Kingdom, reported that a deal had been reached for Wilder to face Jai Opetaia on December 11 at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua. Opetaia holds the Ring Magazine, WBA Regular and Zuffa Boxing cruiserweight titles and would be moving up from 200 pounds to meet Wilder at heavyweight, a division he hasn’t competed in since 2017. Bloody Elbow still considers Opetaia the very likely next opponent, and nothing in the IBA interview contradicts that a deal exists. Wilder simply made clear which name sits at the top of his own list.
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Gassiev is another former cruiserweight who moved north. He won the WBA heavyweight belt by beating Kubrat Pulev last year in Dubai, which means a win over him would put Wilder straight back on a title, the path Bloody Elbow pointed to as the appeal of that matchup.
Wilder, now 41, has only fought once this year. He returned after more than a year away to headline a Misfits Boxing card against Derek Chisora and won by split decision, a performance that prompted plenty of fans to tell him it was time to retire. His history with the man headlining in Cardiff needs no introduction: Wilder and Fury fought three times, with Fury winning twice and the other ending in a draw.
The IBA interview also carried Wilder’s case for why belts don’t drive him anymore. “I want to fight the people who are supposed to be the best,” he said. “When it’s all over, the money isn’t going to go with you when you die. The belts aren’t going to go with you either. But your legacy will live on forever.”
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For Opetaia, the reported Cardiff fight has its own logic. Oleksandr Usyk has said he wants to drop back to cruiserweight and has mentioned David Benavidez, and a win over a name as big as Wilder’s would make Opetaia far harder for Usyk’s side to overlook.
My read: the Gassiev talk is the more honest fight for a man Wilder’s age, a real champion who has stood across from him in sparring and knows exactly what that right hand feels like. Opetaia at heavyweight is a puncher’s bet on size. Either way, Wilder posted a training video Tuesday night with no opponent named, and Cardiff is five weeks out.
