Yes. So they went for a 5'9" 40 year old who has been retired for 5 years and was KOed by Kingsley Ikeke at middleweight back in 2002.
Wilder is a talented fighter but his management is ruining him. He should be fighting durable journeymen like Dominick Guinn and Kendrick Releford at this stage in his career.
Hayes has been inactive since 2007 and has never fought at heavyweight before and he's lost his last 5 fights.
Also, he's fought mostly at light heavyweight, but he's had fights at middleweight, super-middleweight and one at cruiserweight.
Why is Wilder being matched up against such sub par competition? He's more than capable and has the talent to be fighting much more durable opponents like Dominic Guinn, Vinny Maddalone, Kendrick Releford, Robert Hawkins, et al..
Frankly, you guys are doing a vast disservice to him by matching him up against certified bums.
Regards,
Burt
Jay Deas response:
hi burt, thanks for your interest in deontay. this is the first ive heard the name marlon hayes. i was/am under the impression deontay is fighting chris koval (25-8). we also approved eleisier castillo. i havent heard that koval pulled out but ill check into it. i don't know anything about hayes, though i'd never call any boxer a bum. as you can tell by deontay's record, we've stepped him up and of the boxrec top 20 american heavyweights, deontay is number 20. the records of deontay's opponents are better than the records of most of the other guys in the top 20. in other words, deontay's first 20 opponents have a better record than the first 20 opponents of eddie chambers (#1), tony thompson (#2), seth mitchell, oliver mccall, michael grant, and on and on and on. just fyi. thanks, j
thanks for your interest in deontay. he has progressed well since turning pro and has gained invaluable experience sparring with the likes of david haye, tomas adamek, kevin johnson and mike perez. hindsight is 20/20 on matchmaking and what looks like an easy fight after the fact was certainly not going in. for example, fighting damon reed (46-15) just a couple of months after he went 10 with james toney and 7 with hasim rahman looked to be a step up. then d fought a 17-3 mexican in mexico and an 11-1cincinnati boxer in cincinnait who had 150 amateur bouts and was trained by a national coach of the year. in fact, very few up and coming boxers would fight guys in their hometowns. according to boxrec, d is the number 20 ranked heavyweight in america. his opponents records are better than most of the others in the top 20's opponents. in other words, deontay's first 20 opponents have a better record than the first 20 opponents of eddie chambers (#1), tony thompson (#2), seth mitchell, michael grant, oliver mccall, and on and on and on. as for marlon hayes, who deontay is to fight, he is what in boxing is called a late replacement. originally d was to fight elesier castillo, a 30-8 southpaw cuban who has never been stopped. he pulled out. then it was another guy who was 31-10 or so who turned it down. then it was chris koval, 25-8 with 17 knockouts who pulled out at the last minute and now is hayes. these things happen in boxing and certainly not deontay's fault. as for calling any fighter a bum or complete bum, i would never do that. anybody with the guts to step in the ring gets my respect and looking past anyone is a sure ticket to a loss. again, thanks for your interest in deontay. j
the alex leapai\kevin johnson fight is the one i'm keeping my eyes on. neven pajkic & leapai are both top contenders to the british commonwealth title which is now vacant. i have always seen leapai as a C+ fighter at best. he will beat other C level fighters but will lose when he steps up to the next tier of heavyweights like barrett, chisora & johnson. kingpin UD 120-108, 119-109, 118-110
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