Deontay Wilder Accuses Tyson Fury of Loading Gloves in Rematch, Demands Third Fight

Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Deontay Wilder accused Tyson Fury of tampering with his gloves and demanded the British boxer honor their agreement for a third fight.

Wilder released a video on social media on Saturday accusing Fury of cheating in their December 2018 split draw and their rematch in February.

“I saw in the first fight when Ricky Hatton was pulling down your gloves to put your hand in the improper position,” Wilder said in the video. “Y’all tried the same method the second time, but this time, you scratched flesh out of my ears which caused my ears to bleed.”

Wilder’s video included pictures of Hatton, who was in Fury’s corner, touching the 32-year-old’s gloves between rounds in their 2018 bout. Fury has previously denied he cheated.

“I highly believe you put something hard in your glove,” Wilder said in reference to their February fight. “It’s the reason why the side of my face swelled up in an egg weight form and it left a dent in my face as well.”

In his Twitter thread, Wilder also called on Fury to honor their “agreement” and fight for the third time. A trilogy fight was supposed to take place over the summer, but after delays, Fury’s team claimed that the timeframe for the rematch expired. 

In February, Fury beat Wilder with a seventh-round stoppage to claim the WBC belt. Wilder later said he lost because the heavy costume he wore to the ring tired out his legs.

Fury now plans to fight in London on Dec. 5, but his opponent is unknown. Over the summer he announced that he agreed to a two-fight deal with Anthony Joshua, and the first bout could take place in 2021. Joshua is scheduled to fight Kubrat Pulev on Dec. 12 at the O2 Arena in London.