Deontay Wilder Beats Johann Duhaupas to Retain WBC Title

Deontay Wilder successfully defended his WBC title over the weekend by beating tough contender Johann Duhaupas into submission over eleven grueling rounds, earning his 34th KO in 35 professional bouts. Not many were familiar with Duhaupas previous to the bout, but perhaps they should be now. The Frenchman's show of resiliency was impressive and made for a memorable match. Another factoid is that Saturday was the first heavyweight title bout that has been aired on NBC prime time in 30 years, perhaps one of the few title bouts to be aired free to the public in recent times. Maybe boxing is finally starting to come around.

Despite the perceived mismatch leading up to Saturday night, the fight was a fun one to watch. The Alabama native threw a healthy combination of jabs, rights, left hooks and uppercuts that left his opponent's face a bloody mess by the end of the bout. Though Wilder thoroughly dominated the majority of the action, Duhaupas took most of Wilder's shots in stride, and threw back enough to cause a small mouse under the champ's left eye. In the post-fight interview, Wilder would acknowledge his opponent's durability.

"He did everything we expected him to do," Wilder said. "We knew he was tough. We knew he was mentally tough. We knew he was going to come. That's why you can't criticize nobody you don't know. The most scariest people are the ones you don't know.

"He got a hell of chin. When [you're] fighting for a world title it brings a different kind of beast, a bit different animal out of fighters. They come to get it all whether they home or on the road. You got to give him credit. He definitely has my respect. He was very strong and I see why he's never been stopped before. I was prepared to go all 12 rounds."

The loss to Wilder is the first knockout loss on Duhaupas' record. Though the Frenchman had no qualms about losing the fight, he did find the stoppage premature and thought the bout should have continued.

"Wilder's a strong puncher, but I was also ready to go the distance," Duhaupas said. "I don't think the referee should have stopped the fight. I was defending myself and moving. I don't know why he stopped the fight. Yes, I was bleeding but it was not affecting me in any way. I have never been stopped before in a fight and there's a reason for that. It was disappointing he choose to stop it."

Given Duhaupas' performance leading up to the KO, I have no doubt that he could have finished the fight, but there was very little sense in doing so. He was trailing by large margins on all three judges' scorecards, (100-90 on one, 99-91 on the other two), and there wasn't much hope in scoring a comeback KO given how well Wilder was taking his shots. I suppose there is the pride of finishing the fight, but plenty of fights have ended tragically for going one round too long (just look at what happened) a couple of weeks ago in Australia), and whether he realized it or not, Duhaupas did unveil some weaknesses in Wilder, even if he wasn't yet capable enough to capitalize on them.

For me there were moments in Saturday night's showing that raised some concern about the champ. He carried his hands dangerously low, hardly ever brought them back to his chin after unloading, and observing some of his form was downright troubling. In watching the last sequence of punches before the KO, for instance, Wilder squared up considerably and the frantic jump-punching in the end poses a world a problems against a more experienced opponent. He's set to face off against former WBA titlist Alexander Povetkin next (should Povetkin get past Mariusz Wach in November), and that fight brings much more experience and boxing ability to the table against Wilder. The American champ will have to improve quite a bit in order to make it a one-sided affair in his favor. His opponent on Saturday seemed to agree.

"Wilder is a good fighter. I think he is tough and hit me with some good shots, but I also think he should have more preparation to go to the next level," Duhaupas said. "He can compete with Klitschko and Alexander Povetkin, but he needs to train hard and have a strong game plan."

Should the fates play out in favor of the two current champs, Wilder will face off against Wladimir Klitschko sometime in 2016. Klitschko, however, has to first get past the colorful Tyson Fury, a bout that has been recently postponed due to Klitschko suffering a minor calf injury in training last week. Either way, with Wilder, Povetkin, Fury and Klitschko all participating in a sort of informal four-man tourney, boxing heavyweight division is finally drumming up the action and attention it needs.