Boxing: Wilder to return to ring next May with Joshua fight in sights
Deontay Wilder has quashed retirement talk and will return to the ring next May.
The American heavyweight suffered a brutal beating at the hands of Tyson Fury over the weekend.
He was KOd in the eleventh round after being dropped three times by the Gypsy King.
It came after an epic trilogy encounter at the T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, in front of a wild sold out crowd.
There were fears Wilder would retire from boxing after the savage battle, where he suffered numerous injuries.
The 35-year-old broke his hand in the encounter and will have surgery to fix the problem next week.
But 42-2-1 brawler’s manager Shelley Finkel has confirmed he will be back next in late April or May.
He has been banned from a quick ring return after being told he can’t compete for six months by medics.
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Finkel exclusively told SunSport: “He’s sore but he was OK, he was home.
“He’s healing and at this point, if everything is OK, after the hand surgery he’ll probably look to enter the ring mid next year, like April or May.”
He also confirmed that Wilder DOES respect Fury but his “mind was not really there” after eleven brutal rounds.
He added: “Him and I have spoke about that and he does (respect Fury).
“I think his mind wasn’t really there, I think if Deontay saw Fury now he would give him a big embrace.”
Wilder initially drew with Fury, 33, in 2018 and was then beaten in the rematch last year, losing the WBC title.
But he refused to accept the loss, blaming it on everything bar a boxing masterclass from the Gypsy King.