Home Boxing News Deontay Wilder urged to take a leaf from Tyson Fury’s book by...

Deontay Wilder urged to take a leaf from Tyson Fury’s book by sparring partner

Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury. Photo credit: Mikey Williams/Top Rank

One of Deontay Wilder’s sparring partners has called on the former WBC heavyweight champion to employ the same tactics Tyson Fury did when the big Brit relieved him of his world championship in Las Vegas in February last year.

In the rematch of their controversial draw Fury 30-0-1 (21) changed up his gameplan entirely, going from boxer to puncher as he decked the 35-year-old American twice before his corner threw in the towel in the seventh round to save their fighter from further punishment.

It was a different story to their first bout in Los Angeles in December 2018 when Fury boxed from the outside only to be decked twice late in the fight. The judges scored the fight a split draw.

Their third fight is scheduled to take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on October 9 after being rescheduled from July 24 after Fury reportedly tested positive to Covid-19.

Wilder’s sparring partner Stephan ‘Big Shot’ Shaw, who has worked with the former champ in three training camps, is expecting the Tuscaloosa, Alabama native to make adjustments for the trilogy fight.

“I’d take the fight like Fury approached it,” Shaw said to The Sun. “Try and make the best adjustments, because at that level when you have two elite guys in there, it’s all about adjustments.

“Who can make those adjustments? The other guy might come out with a better jab, so I’d have to make the adjustments to get away from that jab.

“You have to be ready to make adjustments, because Tyson Fury, he might not be the most skilled fighter but he’s big, he’s kind of awkward and he’s a smart fighter.

“He’s a great thinker in there and especially with the minds of (trainer) SugarHill Steward added to his team, that’s only going to make him even better, like he did in the second fight.”

The 28-year-old Shaw from St Louis, Missouri stands at 6-foot-4 and holds an undefeated record of 14-0 (10). He has been part of Wilder’s last two training camps for his fights against the 32-year-old Fury.

Shaw has worked with other high-quality heavyweights before including former WBA, WBO and IBF champion Andy Ruiz Jr and former world title challenger Dominic Breazeale.

“It’s been great work, Deontay’s looking sharp, he’s looking pretty good,” said Shaw, who is coming off an eight-round shutout victory over Lyubomyr Pinchuk 13-2-1 (8) at the Wild Card Boxing Club in Los Angeles in December.

“From going with Andy Ruiz or Deontay Wilder, it shows me what I want in my camp or what I don’t want, how to construct it.

“Going down there with Deontay, it definitely let me know how to conduct myself as a world champion.

“It shows me how a training camp from a world champion’s perspective is run. How they conduct everything.”