A year after his classic heavyweight showdown with Tyson Fury, the “Bronze Bomber” returned to the ring to face Finnish heavyweight Robert Helenius. After his loss to Fury in their last bout of the trilogy, many assumed Wilder would retire. Wilder silenced many critics by scoring a devastating first-round KO over Helenius on Saturday.

The Champ Is Here!

After being out of the ring for a year, Wilder showed little rust against Helenius, landing a crushing right hand that knocked his opponent down and finished him with less than 15 seconds to go in the round. Wilder once again proved he is one of the biggest punchers in boxing history with an impressive knockout performance. Another vicious KO preceded his knockout in the co-main event that saw Caleb Plant defeat Anthony Dirrell.

Helenius was on a three-fight win streak in the fight, with two victories coming against Adam Kownacki. Kownacki was considered a legit contender before dropping two contests to Helenius.

With the win, Wilder has catapulted himself back into the conversation about the top heavyweights in the world, and he’ll likely face another top heavyweight in his next fight.

What’s Next?

The WBC, one of boxing’s major sanctioning bodies, announced that they would push for Wilder to face Andy Ruiz. Ruiz is the former unified champion known for his upset knockout of Anthony Joshua. As the WBC points out in their statement, the winner of a Wilder-Ruiz match would be ranked #1 by the sanctioning body. Ruiz did his part by defeating Luis Ortiz earlier in the year. The winner of the proposed matchup between Ruiz and Wilder will be next in line to face Tyson Fury.

While Ruiz is the most likely opponent, Wilder does have options. Unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk has said he’d be interested in a fight with Wilder, which could take place in the UK or the US. A Wilder win could see him set up a 4th fight with Fury for the Undisputed Heavyweight title.

Another opponent for Deontay Wilder could be Anthony Joshua. The fight with Joshua has been brewing since both men were world champions. If made, the fight could be the most significant heavyweight non-title fight of all time. Joshua is coming off two straight losses to Usyk and needs a high-profile opportunity to get back on top. A Wilder-Joshua bout would be the most anticipated fight of the year and potentially the wealthiest heavyweight bout ever to take place in the heavyweight division. Boxing fans worldwide are excited to see what’s next for Deontay Wilder.

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