By Tom Donelson / Author, Member Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA)

This Saturday, Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder is one of the few fights that is actually worth a PPV. In a day in which PPV in both MMA and boxing, there are many fights that are undeserving.  

Today’s heavyweight group is actually full of some actually good fighters at the top of the heavyweight division.  

Wilder is the Alabama masher, who can end a fight with one punch, something he showed against Luis Ortiz. In both Ortiz fight, he was behind on points, but he stopped Ortiz both times.  In their first fight, Ortiz even stunned Wilder and forced Wilder to actually survive.  

Against Fury, Wilder was consistently frustrated by Fury boxing skills.  Fury is an unusual fighter for even though he is 6’9”, he is a very good boxer who has good foot movement. Fury frustrated Wladimir Klitschko in their bout.  While many of us thought at the time, Klitschko age finally showed and certainly at the age of 40, there were times, he never seems to be able to pull the trigger.   While age played a factor in his loss, so did Fury boxing style which also frustrated Wilder as well.

In their first fight, Wilder pushed the action most of the fight, but his aggressiveness was mostly ineffectual.  He did land two big shots that sent Fury down, but both times, Fury got up.  Fury survived knock downs that would have stopped any other fighter.

Fury did not appear to hurt Wilder but there was no doubt Wilder can hurt Fury.  Wilder weakness is occasional amateur tactics.  He occasionally throws his punches wild and he go back straight when he avoids punches. When he goes straight back, he is vulnerable to being hurt by punches coming straight forward. 

Fury showed his own vulnerable when Otto Wallin opened a serious cut in their last bout and nearly forced a stoppage.  Wallin landed solid shots and if those shots were landed by Wilder, the fight would have been over. 

Here are those factors that determine a fight.  Fury has boxing skills but twice he has shown the ability to survive. He survived a nasty cut against Wallin, and he survived two brutal knock downs by Wilder that any other heavyweights wouldn’t have survived.  He is a tough survivor and he also survived his own personal demons.  Those are factors that can’t be discounted.

Wilder has the puncher chance and sometimes his power is a curse since he often depends upon his power to get himself out of trouble and there are times, he is willing to give away rounds because he truly believe he can survive any puncher and he can stop anybody.  Fury showed he could survive and nearly won the decision.  What each fighter has to do to win.  Wilder has to show better boxing skills and use his jab to set up his power shots. 

Fury has to box and move as he did in the first fight and used combinations to counter Wilder.  Frustrate Wilder and force Wilder into a mistake that can be exploited. 

I favor Wilder mainly because I want to see an American be the next dominant thing in the heavyweight division.  The last American champion was Shannon Briggs in 2007 but the last true dominant heavyweight was Evander Holyfield and since 2004, the Klitschko brothers dominated until 2015.  Most their bouts were in Europe and most Americans rarely saw the brothers fight as they rarely came to the United States to defend their title.  (Klitschko brothers often fought to big crowd and they could make big bucks staying in Europe.)

Wilder guarantees the heavyweight division becomes relevant to American boxing fans. (Fury seems to enjoy fighting here in the United States, but Joshua prefer to fight in England where he can fill big football stadium.) 

Wilder knockout power is the decisive factor but Wilder has to do better with boxing skills. Wilder wins by knock out.