Fury vs Wilder, 2018-2021: The Draw, the Towel and the 11th-Round Finish That Closed a Heavyweight Trilogy

Over three nights between December 2018 and October 2021, Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder shared 30 rounds and nine knockdowns. The first fight ended level, the second ended with a towel on the canvas in Las Vegas, and the third, a slugfest at T-Mobile Arena, finished with Fury standing over Wilder in the 11th round.

Two Unbeaten Giants Meet in Los Angeles

When the two heavyweights climbed into the ring at the Staples Center on December 1, 2018, neither had lost as a professional. Wilder held the WBC title and brought a record of 40 wins and no defeats, most of them inside the distance. Fury was 27-0, but his career had stalled after his November 2015 win over Wladimir Klitschko. He had spent roughly two and a half years out of the ring and had only two tune-up fights behind him before this one, so taking on Wilder was a big step up.

The scales showed how differently the two had prepared. Fury came in at 256½ pounds, the lightest he had weighed since his return. Wilder weighed 212½ pounds, the least he had carried since his professional debut in 2008. A crowd of 17,698 came to watch.

Outboxed for Rounds, Then Floored in the Ninth

For long stretches of the night Fury outboxed the champion, much as he had outboxed Klitschko. The punch counts recorded on Wikipedia's account of the fight back this up: Fury landed 84 of 327 punches, about 26 percent, while Wilder landed 71 of 430, about 17 percent, and Fury out-landed him in nine of the twelve rounds. Wilder's danger never went away, though. In the ninth round a left hook followed by an overhand right put Fury on the floor. He got up and kept boxing.

Round 12: Flat on His Back, Then Up Again

With about two minutes left in the final round, Wilder found the shot he had been looking for all night. A right hand followed by a left dropped Fury flat on his back, and for a moment he looked finished. As referee Jack Reiss counted, Fury rolled over and climbed to his feet. Before letting the fight continue, Reiss made him show he was clear-headed by having him step in different directions. Fury did, and he made it to the final bell.

The judges could not agree. Alejandro Rochin of Mexico scored it 115-111 for Wilder, Robert Tapper of Canada had it 114-112 for Fury, and Phil Edwards of Britain scored it even at 113-113. That made it a split draw, and Wilder kept his belt. Both men left convinced they had won. Wilder argued that the two knockdowns settled it, and Fury, speaking to the Associated Press, said he had shown "good heart to get up" and was ready for a rematch. Fury's recovery in the 12th, more than the scorecards, became the image people remembered.

The Rematch: A Heavier Fury Walks Forward

The second fight took place on February 22, 2020, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, in front of a sold-out crowd of 15,816. Fury had changed his preparation. He now worked with trainer Javan "SugarHill" Steward, and he weighed 273 pounds, about 16½ pounds more than in Los Angeles. Wilder was 231. ESPN described Fury's plan as an aggressive one, and instead of boxing on the back foot he came forward and backed the champion up.

In the third round a right hand to the side of the head sent Wilder down. In the fifth a left hook to the body put him on the canvas again. Fury had a point taken off for holding in that round, but he was still well ahead. Wilder was bleeding from his ear. His camp later said he needed stitches for a cut inside the ear.

The Towel at 1:39 of the Seventh

In the seventh round Fury trapped Wilder in a neutral corner and landed right hands that Wilder could not answer. Co-trainer Mark Breland threw a white towel into the ring, and referee Kenny Bayless stopped the fight at 1:39 of the round. Fury led 59-52, 59-52 and 58-53 on the cards at the time, and ESPN's punch statistics had him landing 82 punches to Wilder's 34. Fury took the WBC title and kept the lineal championship, and Wikipedia's account adds that the vacant Ring Magazine belt was also on the line.

Wilder disagreed with his corner's decision. ESPN quoted him as saying, "I was ready to go out on my shield." Head trainer Jay Deas also disagreed with the stoppage. In the days afterwards Wilder blamed other factors as well, including the weight of the elaborate costume he wore to the ring. Wikipedia notes that these explanations were widely criticised. He and Breland split later that year.

Arbitration, a Pandemic and a Collapsed Superfight

The rematch contract included a clause for a third fight, and Wilder exercised it at the end of February 2020. The fight was first scheduled for July 2020 but was postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns that followed. Fury's team later argued that the clause had expired, and the dispute went to arbitration. On May 17, 2021, the arbitrator ruled for Wilder and ordered the fight to take place, which ended plans for a unification bout between Fury and Anthony Joshua. Fury then tested positive for COVID-19 in July 2021, and the trilogy was moved again, this time to October 9 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Both men weighed in at the heaviest of their careers. Fury came in at 277 pounds and Wilder at 238.

Five Knockdowns in Ten Rounds

The third fight turned into a slugfest. In the third round Fury dropped Wilder with a right hook and an uppercut, and it looked as if the rematch was about to repeat. In the fourth round, though, Wilder knocked Fury down twice, first with a straight right and then with a short hook. For the second time in the series Fury had to get up off the floor against Wilder, and he did both times.

From there Fury took control again, and in the tenth round a right hand put Wilder down for the second time that night. Wilder got up and saw out the round.

The End in the 11th

Early in the 11th round Fury caught Wilder with a left hook and then a clean right hand to the side of the head. Wilder fell face first, and referee Russell Mora stopped the fight at 1:10. Some outlets recorded the result as a knockout and others as a technical knockout. Fury was ahead on all three cards at the time, 95-91, 94-92 and 95-92. CBS Sports counted 150 punches landed by Fury against Wilder's 72.

Fury's record moved to 31-0-1 and Wilder's to 42-2-1. Afterwards Fury said he had gone over to show respect and that Wilder "didn't want to give it back," as reported by CBS Sports. Promoter Bob Arum said he had never seen a better heavyweight fight in his long career. The Ring Magazine named it the Fight of the Year for 2021.

What the Trilogy Left Behind

Over the three fights there were nine knockdowns. Fury went down four times and Wilder five. The trilogy started with a draw nobody was happy with and ended with no doubt about who had won. Wilder never got the decisive win his power seemed to promise, but in the first and third fights he landed shots that would have finished most heavyweights. Fury's two recoveries, in the 12th round in Los Angeles and the fourth round in Las Vegas, are what people remember most about the series.

Sources

• Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
• Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury II, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
• Tyson Fury vs. Deontay Wilder III, Wikipedia, accessed October 2026
• Wilder retains heavyweight title after split-decision draw with Fury, The Associated Press via theScore, December 2, 2018
• Tyson Fury stops Deontay Wilder as corner throws towel in 7th, ESPN, February 23, 2020
• Tyson Fury vs. Deontay Wilder 3 fight results: Gypsy King rallies to TKO Bronze Bomber in epic thriller, CBS Sports (Brian Campbell), October 10, 2021