Deontay Wilder stands by accusation that Tyson Fury cheated in rematch: ‘I’ll go to my grave believing what I believe in’

The heat between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder is boiling over ahead of their trilogy matchup.

Fury vs. Wilder 3 takes place this Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The first meeting ended in a controversial split draw in a fight most people felt Fury should’ve won. The second fight was a different story as Fury battered Wilder for seven rounds before the latter’s corner threw in the towel to become the WBC and The Ring heavyweight champion.

Since the bout, Wilder has thrown out accusations that Fury cheated by using “loaded gloves.” When asked at the Fury vs. Wilder 3 press conference if he regretted those claims, Wilder held firm.

“I don’t regret it and I’ll go to my grave believing what I believe in,” Wilder said. “I know things for fact, I have confirmation, clarity of a lot of things. One thing about it: men lie, women lie, but your eyes don’t lie with what you see. People can believe what they want, we’re all human, but the eyes don’t lie, and it only made me better as a man, as a fighter to understand, to see things and know things for facts. It made me even hungrier than before.”

Fury, of course, has addressed the claims in the past, including in a recent interview on The MMA Hour. But “The Gypsy King” couldn’t help himself.

“I don’t care because, obviously, it comes from an unwell person,” Fury responded. “He accused me of everything, accused his team, his trainer, the suit, injuries, the [Nevada Athletic Commission]—they were in it as well—the referee, and whoever else.

“Maybe if he had come up with one of these excuses, it would’ve been believable, but not 15 of them. Come on. He can believe what he wants, but what it tells me is that he’s a weak mental person who I’m gonna knock out on Saturday night. I beat him the first time after three years out of the ring, quite comfortably too. I absolutely obliterated him in the rematch. This third fight I can see it as more of the same.

“Wilder said I only won the second fight because I cheated, but then he goes and changes his whole team and does this extra training—trains as hard as he’s ever trained—and all of that. So I ask the question: if I only won because of cheating, what was the point of changing everything and doing all of this other work? Can anybody answer that question? I know he can’t because he doesn’t have the brains to [answer it].”

When asked to give his final thoughts on the third meeting with his rival, Wilder kept things simple.

“My energy is like my mind, it’s very violent,” Wilder said. “I’m just ready to go [on Saturday]. I’ve dedicated myself, devoted my time and my body, me and my team reinvented. I’m ready to reintroduce myself to the world. Prepare yourself for battle and get ready for war.”

When Fury was given his opportunity to respond, he had a lot to say, which led to a back-and-forth and things getting a little out of hand. Ultimately, Fury wasn’t going to stop talking for anybody in order to get his point across.

“For those who hold the hot coal with the intention of throwing at somebody, guess what? They’re the ones who are gonna get burned,” Fury stated. “I don’t want to hurt Deontay Wilder, I just want to beat him in a fight, and he knows what he’s saying are lies, and deep down in his soul he lost. He lost the first time, he lost the second time, and he’s gonna lose the third time.

“After this fight, he’ll be back to working at the fast food chain he was working at early on in his career because that’s the only place he’s gonna be welcome.

“You’re in denial, and you’re getting knocked out. That’s your legacy, tattered, torn to bits, finished. You’re getting knocked the f*ck out.”