Deontay Wilder's Pre-Fight Defeatism Raises Concerns

Deontay Wilder sounds like he's having a mental breakdown, talking about retirement if he loses his fight this Saturday night against Zhilei Zhang in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Former WBC heavyweight champion Wilder (43-3-1, 42 KOs) has a losing streak in mind as he faces Zhang (26-2-1, 21 KOs) for twelve rounds in their contest. Kingdom Arena in a 5 vs 5 event.

Negative Impact on Morale

Promoter Eddie Hearn must have his doubts about selecting the 38-year-old Wilder as captain of his current Matchroom Team.

Wilder's blurred vision because his fighting is contrary to the captain's position. When you're on the battlefield, it looks bad for the person in charge of the troops to have a negative opinion. It lowers morale.

It is too late for Hearn to fill Wilder's place, but he must pull him aside and let him know that he must strengthen his bad speech because he is the one who should be the leader. If the general was in charge, he would consider removing Wilder from the position of captain because he does not sound fit to fight.

Wilder's Comments Raise Red Flags

“I don't think the heavyweight division is fun without Deontay Wilder, but come Saturday night, we'll see,” said Deontay Wilder speaking to Secondsout, talking about his match with Zhilei Zhang this Saturday in Riyadh.

“Will I win? Who knows? But on Saturday night, it's the real answer, and we'll see. This could be the end of the job. This could be the last goodbye, Deontay Wilder's goodbye if I lose. Yes, if I win, I go on to bigger and better things.”

Zhang, 40, will be beaten, but he has great power in both hands. If he connects cleanly with any of his shots, he will knock Wilder out. The only chance Wilder has is to get to Zhang before he lands one of his powerful shots because the fight will be over if the two-time Chinese Olympian lands anything.

Zhang has the kind of power where even if he can get a jab, he will KO Wilder. As fans have seen in Wilder's two losses to Tyson Fury, he can't take a punch without flinching.

Wilder-Zhang will be shown live on DAZN PPV this Saturday, June 1, in Riyadh.