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It’s Showtime! Deontay Wilder chooses to stay with PBC, will face Dominic Breazeale inside the Barclays Center on May 18th

Wilder and Breazeale will look to settle a very heated score in Brooklyn.

“There’s no place like home.”

Deontay Wilder announced he will be remaining with Premier Boxing Champions and Showtime. His next bout will be against Dominic Breazeale for the WBC Heavyweight Championship inside the Barclays Center on May 18th.

The process to get to this moment was a long and exhausting one. Wilder (40-0-1) is coming off of a draw against Tyson Fury back in December. A potential rematch was in motion before Fury signed an exclusive deal with ESPN’s Top Rank. Anthony Joshua, a man who Wilder has been linked to for a number of years, is busy facing off against Jarrell Miller in June. The odd man out, Wilder had the power to choose where he wanted to go. Ultimately, he chose a place that he has called home for several years.

“The thing about having freedom is that it allows you to dictate your career,” Wilder said during the press conference. “When you sign with people, now they’re in control. We’ve seen many fighters get into situations with promoters and get put on the shelf. They have families they need to feed but they aren’t in control. You don’t want to be tied up for a long time.”

While the amount or any aspect of the new agreement wasn’t announced, Stephen Espinoza and Wilder stated that the deal blew everyone else out of the water. Now, with TV and PPV exposure, Wilder has a chance to evolve his already impressive resume which includes 39 wins via knockout.

Wilder faces off against Breazeale (20-1), a man who has already faced off against Antony Joshua. While he ended up losing the bout to Joshua via seventh-round TKO back in 2016, he has a taste of what he can anticipate when facing Wilder. Breazeale is on a three-fight win streak, recently defeating Carlos Negron in December due to a ninth-round KO.

“I’m excited for the event more so than just fighting Deontay Wilder,” Breazeale stated. “I want that WBC title. What I bring to the fight is excitement and consistent action. I’m going to bring the action all night. I’m not scared to stick my nose out there and look for the big shot. I know the big shot is coming as long as I set it up the right way.

This fight is expected to be personal due to a number of reasons. Not only is Wilder looking to retain his title for the ninth time, he is also looking to avenge his family. While neither had bad beef to talk about before, their relationship escalated when, according to Wilder, Breazeale jumped his brother Marsellos. Breazeale has clapped back by stating he was harassed by Wilder’s crew when his family was around him. Add in the hostility and the end result was an entertaining press conference that confirmed how personal and violent this bout could be.

Wilder’s deal can allow fights to be on PPV and Showtime, and he doesn’t believe Breazeale is worthy of a PPV fight. The challenger has a chance to use his calm demeanor to silence his critics and the always passionate Wilder.

This will be Breazeale’s third fight in a row inside the Barclays Center. For Wilder, this will be his fourth and his first time back since his comeback win against Luis Ortiz back in March of 2018.

Tickets for Wilder v. Breazeale go on sale Friday, March 22 at 10 a.m. ET. Tickets can be purchased at the Barclays Center box office, Ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000.

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Daniel Yanofsky

Baseball Editor, Misc. Sports Editor. Covers all things combat sports (MMA, Pro Wrestling and Boxing). When he's not writing, Daniel hosts a podcast, The Main Event.
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