Deontay Wilder in line for vacant WBC heavyweight title shot
Deontay Wilder will be expecting a call soon if Tyson Fury intends to relinquish his top division belt. Wilder is on red alert for a shot at the vacant WBC heavyweight title after champion Tyson Fury retired again.
After losing his two previous attempts against Fury, Wilder remains number one in the WBC rankings for August.
This scenario means “The Bronze Bomber” will get the first refusal for an opportunity once the World Boxing Council reacts to Fury’s decision.
Wilder failed to dethrone current ruler Tyson Fury in February 2020 when beaten in seven rounds. In an October 2021 trilogy, he got halted in eleven.
Despite those two defeats, Wilder remained in favor with the WBC Ratings Committee. Due to ruling for five years, Wilder is also the top contender for WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman.
This situation gathers pace due to a recent roadblock between Fury and Derek Chisora. “The Gypsy King” wanted a trilogy that didn’t go down well with fans.
On his 34th birthday, Fury ratified that we would step away. As a result, the WBC and lineal titles will become vacant.
Due to his position as the top-ranked heavyweight with the WBC, Wilder will get offered the chance to contest the green and gold belt.
Whether that could be against prospective opponent Robert Helenius is another story. Helenius is ranked number nine and can earn a voluntary shot at present.
But if the WBC moved to sanction Wilder vs Helenius, they would face opposition from the other seven contenders rated above the Finn.
Frank Sanchez or the winners of Joe Joyce vs Joseph Parker or Andy Ruiz Jr. vs Luis Ortiz should get contacted before Helenius. However, knowing Sulaiman, he would want Wilder to get a shot at the title as soon as possible.
Therefore, whoever Wilder fights would get an unexpected opportunity at the strap. Sulaiman could then look to compensate the rest of the group with a mandatory tournament.
Once Ruiz vs Ortiz and Joyce vs Parker is in the books this fall, that would leave Sanchez, Arslanbek Makhmudov, Dillian Whyte, and those two winners.
As Whyte recently had a chance against Fury, the WBC could opt for semi-finals without the Briton involved. The eventual victor of the tournament could face the champion in 2023.
There could be some scope for negotiation with everything on the table. But that’s provided all sides can agree on how it plays out.
After dropping two straight reverses, Wilder will be pleased if he can make it fourteen straight world title fights upon his Pay Per View comeback. Plenty of work for the WBC to do yet, though.
