Deontay Wilder vs. Anthony Joshua may truly be dead.
The long-awaited heavyweight superfight once again burst into flames on Saturday after Wilder suffered a shocking and lopsided unanimous decision loss at the hands of Joseph Parker in the co-headlining bout of the Day of Reckoning event in Riyadh, Saudia Arabia. All three judges scored the contest for the 31-year-old New Zealand native — 118-111, 118-110, and 120-108 — imploding the proposed plans for a Wilder vs. Joshua bout in early 2024.
Check out reaction Wilder’s stunning upset loss below, including commentary from Francis Ngannou and a callout from his representative Marquel Martin.
Here’s what I think. 2 fight deal Joshua vs Ngannou. Saudi then….Africa. You heard it here first. #Maktub.
— Time (@Marquel_Martin) December 23, 2023
HORRIBLE performance by Wilder. I gave him NOT a single round.
— Amanda Serrano (@Serranosisters) December 23, 2023
Yoooo boxing can be boring Af sometimes
— Billy Quarantillo (@BillyQMMA) December 23, 2023
The boxing purists who laughed at the thought of Francis Ngannou beating Deontay Wilder in a boxing match aren’t laughing anymore. pic.twitter.com/aocqpJQY1d
— MMA History Today (@MMAHistoryToday) December 23, 2023
HUGE upset, Parker shuts out Wilder over 12!
— Hasim Rahman Jr. (@_HasimRahmanJr) December 23, 2023
Madness, that after the fury fight I feel like Ngannou does wilder & Parker. That 1 rounds in 2 years has done wilder zero favours!
— Jack ‘Tank’ Shore (@jackshoremma) December 23, 2023