Coming up on October 15th, in a bout that will be televised on Fox PPV, heavyweight
contender Robert Helenius will square off against former WBC heavyweight champion Deontay
Wilder.
I have to say I really like this match-up at this particular point in time.
You have Wilder coming off his only two losses, back-to-back stoppage defeats he suffered
against heavyweight world champion Tyson Fury; and then you have Helenius having recently
resurrected his career with back-to-back victories against the previously undefeated contender,
Adam Kownacki.
Once upon a time Helenius was a promising up and coming undefeated contender who had
beaten three former heavyweight champions inside the distance against Lamon Brewster,
Sam Peter, and Sergey Liakhovich.
But following a controversial decision win against Dereck Chisora, an injury and some
contract disputes left him very inactive over a three year stretch, and he would suffer
losses against Johann Duhaupas, Dillian Whyte, and Gerald Washington.
Going into his first bout against the undefeated Kownacki, he was generally viewed as washed
up and past his best.
But like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Helenius resurrected his career with a fantastic
showing.
Helenius showed a strong jab, he absorbed a lot of hard shots, he exhibited toughness
and courage, and at the end of the night he outgunned Kownacki in a firefight.
Helenius won by 4th round TKO, and all of a sudden The Nordic Nightmare was back in
the mix.
The rematch happened a year and a half later on the undercard of Wilder’s third fight
with Fury, and Helenius looked even better this time around.
Helenius was more confident, he had Kownacki hurt very early on, and Helenius was landing
hard clubbing shots repeatedly, and a desperate Kownacki ultimately started throwing below
the belt.
Initially it was ruled a disqualification victory for Helenius in round 6, although
officially the result was changed to a TKO win for The Nordic Nightmare.
For Deontay Wilder, he is looking to bounce back after losing his WBC belt against lineal
heavyweight world champion Tyson Fury.
Their epic trilogy is the defining heavyweight rivalry in this era.
Prior to losing against Fury, Wilder had made an impressive 10 consecutive title defenses
of his WBC belt, including the draw in his first bout with Fury.
To put that in perspective, only Wladimir Klitschko, Larry Holmes, and the great Joe
Louis ever made more consecutive heavyweight title defenses.
Wilder receives a lot of criticism for the level of opposition he faced prior to Fury,
but the fact remains, 10 consecutive title defenses is no easy feat.
And the only two fights Deontay has ever lost were against the man who ended the 10 year
reign of Wladimir before ending his own 5 year reign.
And Tyson Fury had to go to war and get up off the canvas twice to win that third fight
in the rivalry.
The biggest question going in is how much did the Fury fights take out of Wilder, both
physically and mentally.
If Wilder proved nothing else against Fury, he proved that his heart and courage are beyond
reproach.
Indeed Wilder fought with every fiber of his being while giving his very best effort in
defeat.
I’m inclined to believe that Wilder will be as mentally determined as ever, and while
Wilder has always had some technical limitations in terms of the art of the sweet science,
he has more than made up for it with incredible determination and a lethal nuclear right hand.
Wilder has dropped every opponent he has ever faced, including the 4 times he dropped Fury
throughout their trilogy.
But even if Wilder is the exact same guy he was before facing Fury, this is still not
a given for Wilder.
Helenius is a big strong guy who isn’t afraid to scrap, he has legit knockout power in both
hands, he has decent all around boxing skills with an educated stiff jab, and against Kownacki
he showed that he can still compete and win against a highly ranked contender.
His best days may be behind him, but he is still a formidable guy with a big punch.
Him and Wilder are familiar with each other, and in theory this is something that might
favor Helenius given he has better overall boxing fundamentals.
If Helenius can establish an early groove with his jab, Wilder might be in for a really
tough challenge.
Combine that with the fact that Helenius arguably carries more power than Fury, and it could
wind up ending in disaster for Wilder.
This is a fight I definitely believe will not go the distance.
With the big power from both of these guys, I suspect someone is going to get stopped
- although as I say this, it might imply we’re headed for a 12 round tactical chess match.
But that would surprise me a great deal.
At the end of the day, I believe Wilder will emerge triumphant, and the reason I believe
this is two-fold.
First and foremost, while Helenius might be more fundamentally sound than Wilder, he isn’t
more fundamentally sound than Fury was.
Helenius has more of a textbook style, the variety of which Wilder has generally done
well against.
Helenius isn’t as fast as Fury, he isn’t as slick and innovative as Fury, and he is
much easier to hit clean.
Beyond that, the other thing is that Wilder himself is less predictable and trickier to
tee off on than Kownacki, who didn’t do himself any favors against Helenius, as he
repeatedly walked right into his power zone time and time again.
I don’t expect Wilder will do this, and even if he does, Wilder is a good deal more
slippery than Kownacki.
So for my official prediction, I am taking Deontay Wilder for the win, and I believe
he will get to Helenius early.
So I’m picking Wilder by knockout in round 2.
I think we might get some fireworks while it lasts, but I’m expecting Wilder will
land his bomb before Helenius, and that even if Helenius lands something big early himself,
that he won’t be able to take Wilder into deep water the same way Fury did.
I like Deontay Wilder by 2nd round knockout, but what the hell do I know.
My track record is certainly less than stellar, and I’m no Quasimodo.
But whatever happens, I am very fired up for this one.
I believe it’s an absolutely fantastic match-up that will reveal a lot about where Helenius
is following back-to-back big wins that resurrected his career, and it will reveal a lot about
where Wilder is following back-to-back losses against Tyson Fury.
Best of luck to both The Bronze Bomber and The Nordic Nightmare, and may the best man
win on that night.
So who do you think will win?
Please share your thoughts in the comment section.
Thank you very much for watching everyone, I hope you enjoyed, and have a wonderful night.
This is Rummy’s Corner.
Nostradamus.
Quasimodo is the Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Oh right.
Notre Damus.
Nostradamus and Notre Dame.
It’s two different things completely.