Claressa Shields dismisses Deontay Wilder vs Anthony Joshua

On April 4, at the O2 Arena in London, Deontay Wilder vs Derek Chisora headlined an MF Pro fight card in association with Queensberry Promotions live on DAZN pay-per-view.

It was a largely messy main event, with untidy knockdowns, point deductions, and a cornerman entering the ring. Despite all the drama, Wilder did do enough to claim a split decision victory. Claressa Shields has reflected on Wilder-Chisora and a potential Anthony Joshua showdown for “The Bronze Bomber.”

Deontay Wilder defeats Derek Chisora in London slobberknocker

It was a messy main event from the first bell to the last, but there was drama woven in throughout. Chisora was knocked down once in the 8th round and once in the 11th. Wilder was deducted one point in the 8th for pushing the Brit, and survived a knockdown in the 11th, which appeared more of a slip.

Wilder (45-4-1, 43 KOs) produced the cleaner work throughout, landing a number of eye-catching right hands that visibly hurt Chisora (36-14, 23 KOs). It wasn’t one for the purists of the sweet science, but it was wildly entertaining. It went to the judges’ scorecards, which read 115-111 Wilder, 115-112 Chisora, while the final scorecard read 115-113 Wilder, awarding the American a deserved win.

After his latest win, Wilder made it clear he still harbours lofty ambitions to conquer the heavyweight division:

“As long as these guys are in the heavyweight division, I’m here and you can call me Mr Clean because I’m gonna clean up the whole division.

“The heavyweight division is nothing without Deontay Wilder. The character that I bring, the things that I say, what other fighters do you know that make things go viral from the things that he say? I don’t know one.

“That being said, you need that type of character. Somebody that is real, somebody that is passionate about what he says and unapologetic for what he says,” said Wilder.

Claressa Shields reacts to Deontay Wilder win and possible Joshua fight

Reflecting on Deontay Wilder vs Derek Chisora, Shields said: “They both crazy. I was happy to see Deontay Wilder get a win and not get hurt. And I want both of those guys to happily retire.”

After Wilder’s win, he and Joshua had an awkward encounter that fueled speculation these two aging heavyweights could still meet.

When asked if Wilder vs Anthony Joshua (29-4, 26 KOs) is still an enticing fight, she said: “Not to me, but hey, if they want to do it, then go ahead.”

Is Shields correct? Has the moment passed for Wilder-Joshua, or is it still enticing?