- After Deontay Wilder defeated Luis Ortiz in the seventh round of a Las Vegas showdown on Saturday, attention is turning to a high-stakes rematch with Tyson Fury.
- Wilder and Fury fought to a draw in 2018 and appear set to contest a rematch in February 2020, according to Business Insider sources.
- Since being the only man to not lose to Wilder, Fury has fought twice, beating Tom Schwarz in June and then Otto Wallin in September.
- The Wallin fight was not without consequence, though, as Fury suffered a nasty cut and had to have 47 stitches to repair the wound.
- He was reportedly told not to box for two months but a fighter he knows well, Carl Frampton, told Business Insider that February is plenty of time to be fit, focused, and ready to do it all again.
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Deontay Wilder's seventh round knockout victory against Luis Ortiz on Saturday means attention is beginning to turn to a super showdown between the American and his unbeaten rival Tyson Fury.
Since leaving the Staples Center in Los Angeles with a draw in the first Wilder fight in 2018, Fury has fought twice, beating Tom Schwarz in June and then Otto Wallin in September.
Though Fury beat both guys, he did not escape the Wallin bout unharmed as he needed 47 stitches to help repair a deep, bloody cut he suffered early in the ruckus.
Fury was reportedly told he could not box for two months amid fears it could reopen and cause greater problems in future fights.
But the former two-weight world champion boxer Carl Frampton believes those fears will likely be irrelevent come fight night in February.
Frampton and Fury know each other well and boxed on the same Belfast show in Northern Ireland last year. Before Wilder's Las Vegas victory at the weekend, Frampton told Business Insider that "the cut will heal."
He said: "The fight happened middle of September, the cut will definitely heal. People say the cut may reopen but if it reopens in February it probably reopens in July or August, whenever. I'm not taking too much attention to the cut healing."
Fury 'convincingly' won the first Wilder fight, Frampton said
The 2018 fight between Wilder and Fury did not end without controversy, as many observors disputed the decision to declare the bout a draw. The result was booed by those in attendance. Bloody Elbow called it a "robbery."
Wilder bloodied Fury's nose by the fourth round, then scored two knockdowns in the ninth and 12th rounds. However, Fury, for the most part, appeared to be the dominant boxer even though Compubox data suggests Wilder landed more shots.
"He won the fight convincingly the first time," Frampton told Business Insider. "Most people think the same."
Frampton suggests Wilder's tactics may change in the Fury rematch, which, while uncomfirmed, is tentatively scheduled for February 22, 2020, according to Business Insider sources.
"Wilder's tactics might change, this time. I think Wilder will be more gung-ho. He knows he can hurt Fury because he had him on his backside twice. And he'll really go out and try and knock him out.
"[Wilder's] surname just fits perfect. He's a wild fighter, throws shots all over the place, nothing about him is textbook. But if he hits you in the end with one of those windmill punches, it's lights out."
Frampton is undecided who will win the rematch. "One of two things will happen, [Wilder] may knock him out or he'll be outboxed even more convincingly. I'm still undecided but would be great for Fury to get revenge as I do think he won the first fight."
Frampton, meanwhile, returns to the ring this weekend for the first time since last year, taking on the American fighter Tyler McCreary at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on Saturday, November 30.
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