Deontay Wilder talks about being the ‘captain’ of Matchroom Boxing as he approaches his June 1 fight with Zhilei Zhang. In particular, Wilder claims to feel better working with a group of people who encourage him to commit murders in the ring, rather than trying to force him to limit his rhetoric for broader public consumption. Check out what Wilder had to say below.

Wilder signed with Matchroom after a long stay at PBC

“To be apart of Matchroom and the captain, how ironic, but at the same time special and sweet. A wise ancient man once told me that if you do business even with people you don’t like, then business is business, treat it accordingly.

“Sometimes you may have to work with people you’ll never see for 1,000 years, but ultimately, being around a person for that long, understanding their way of being as they understand your actions, you know what kind of category or place, where you can place them when they are in your environment.

“So if you know how to deal with a person, you can get along with them, you are able to coexist with them.”

How he rejuvenated himself and regained that spark after losing to Joseph Parker

“The last one was a blessing in disguise. I thought I had it all figured out, and when you think you have it all figured out and you’re going through something else – you probably think things aren’t as polished as you thought until you realize when you get into a fight like hell: some more is lacking. And that’s a blessing in disguise, because after that fight on Monday morning, I hit the ground running.

“That’s why I can’t wait to show what I feel here. You know, I lost my love for boxing. I have lost that fire and drive because of many things that have happened to me in my life. And people don’t understand that as a fighter you’re much more outside the ring. We still have business issues, we still have personal issues, and then we have to deal with life itself. It’s fate. Then come and try to be the best you can be in your career. We have to deal with this, we are not robots.

“The main thing that excites me is that I’m working with people who want to see this monster, who want to see this killer, who won’t judge me for saying I want to kill man and I put them on my record, just as the world did for various reasons.

On how he views his fight against Zhilei Zhang

“I have the utmost respect for him. He’s a fighter and I think he’s a damn good fighter too, so I’ll definitely have to put him on my A-game. He understands what he’s up against and what I bring, and I understand what I struggle with and what I often present. Two bangers, that’s a good fight. It’s a really amazing fight, I can’t wait for it.

“I didn’t do what I wanted in the last fight, so I owe something to the Saudi fans. I owe them some emotion. I owe them a knockout. I owe them a great victory. I can’t wait for June 1 to knock out Matchroom.”

Puerto Rican prospect Xander Zayas is ready for his first main event, as Top Rank announced today that the 21-year-old super welterweight champion will meet former interim champion Patrick Teixeira during an ESPN appearance on June 8 at The Theater at Madison Square Garden.

This is the third 10-round appearance for Zayas (18-0, 12 KO), although he needed less than 10 rounds to eliminate Roberto Valenzuela Jr and Jorge Fortea. He immediately called for a February fight with Teixeira (34-4, 25 KO) after the latter was stopped, which was obviously not possible within two months, but now he is getting his wish on his biggest stage yet.

Brazil’s Teixeira, as Scott put it, has had a bumpy path. He clearly grew into his candidacy when Curtis Stevens punched him in 2016, but five fights later he returned to the scene and shocked then-undefeated Carlos Adames to win the WBO interim belt. What followed was a three-fight, bunny-knockout skid sandwiched between decision losses to the very talented Brian Castano and Magomed Kurbanov.

He’s back on board after three wins over delicate competition in his native Brazil and should give us a good idea of ​​where Zayas fits into the picture at 154 pounds.

Zayas said: “Representing Puerto Rico on a day when Boricua culture is celebrated and honored is a sacred commitment I make to my people. On June 8, I will no longer fight only for myself. I will fight on behalf of every Puerto Rican who always perseveres when the going gets tough. This is my first main event and my first fight against a former world champion. I intend to carry my flag and make it shine on one of the greatest stages in the world, the “Mecca of Boxing.”

Teixeira said: “It took longer than expected, but this fight has finally come. I can’t wait to get in the ring and announce the division. I already did it once when I won the world title against Adames on Top Rank, and I’ll do it again with one of their rising stars. Zayas is a great talent and everyone will support him during this significant weekend. But my experience will make a difference and I will show it on June 8.

In this joint fight, former amateur standout Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington (11-0, 7 KO) will face Jose Enrique Vivas (23-3, 12 KO). Carrington’s stock hit an all-time high following the firing of Bernardo Torres in February, and while it’s not a significant gain, it should be nice. Vivas can give his all, even if he has peaked after losses to Ruben Villa, Eduardo Baez and Joet Gonzalez.

Carrington said: “Vivas should be my toughest opponent yet, but as I do every time I fight in Shu York City, I intend to put on a crowd-pleasing performance. Fighting in front of massive Puerto Rican fans is something special. I can’t wait for June 8.”

Undercard highlights include Jahi Tucker’s (10-1-1, 5 KO) comeback attempt against veteran Quincy LaVallais (17-4-1, 12 KO) and recent fights against multiple undefeated players such as Delante “Tiger” Johnson (12 -0, 6 KO) and Elijah Flores (8-0, 3 KO).

Devin Haney will face Ryan Garcia in the massive main event of DAZN PPV on Saturday in Brooklyn, capping off one of the strangest pre-fight situations I can remember.

Haney is defending his WBC 140-pound world title against Garcia, whose pre-fight antics have many wondering if he’s really focused on the fight or if it was all just some weird games.

Will Garcia be able to pick up the win and hand Haney his first loss, or will Haney hand Ryan his second professional defeat?

Scott Christ (13-1)

I just can’t pick Ryan Garcia, guys. Even if the entire physique was “trolling”, a lot of energy goes into anything that isn’t his boxing training, and he needs to be much better than ever to win this fight.

Let’s say it’s the best Garcia versus the best Haney. Then Ryan’s chances come down to his strength, as he’s not as good a boxer as Haney and not as versatile. Haney fights smarter, more confidently and reacts less to his opponent. Garcia isn’t a bad fighter, remember, he has some skills and great natural talents that he doesn’t fully utilize, but Haney at his best is an elite boxer on the market today. Ryan has never been that kind of guy, but you want to explain “why.”

If it’s the best Haney vs. a Garcia who isn’t in his prime, Haney will dominate. Devin had been injured in fights before, but he was also trying to get used to those mistakes, even though they were relatively minor. He probably made a lucky decision against Vasily Lomachenko, but Garcia doesn’t fight anything like Lomachenko and, even at his best, he’s not going to test Haney the way Loma might.

There is no other choice here. Haney either keeps it or wins by wide and clear decision. The only thing that can throw Devin off balance now is “if.” To have he’s fighting too emotionally, which has never really been an issue for him, and I just don’t think Ryan Garcia’s attempts to upset him will work when the bell rings. He will just do what he has always done and that is the box because that is the focus of his life. Haney via TKO-11

Will Esco (11-3)

So, I recently got into Helldivers 2 and spent many hours developing sporadic and super samples to fully upgrade my warship (which I recently managed to achieve until the last update). Okay, some more work. I’m on one of the long, 40-minute Suicide Difficulty missions, and artfully traverse the entire map, collecting 31 samples on my own, chopping up Yellow Titans, and blasting Chargers, dodging an army of those pesky Stalkers along the way. I’m such a G

Finally, after investing a full 40 minutes in breeding samples and not taking any fatalities, I reach the mining zone where we set up defenses, expecting to be attacked by enemies who end up swarming in (you know, that’s exactly how the game mechanics are designed). Things get a little tense, but that’s nothing out of the ordinary given the difficulty level, and just as the extraction shuttle lands, instead of just jumping on the ship and completing the mission, one of the random idiots freaks out and calls for a cluster bomb strike on LZ — ALL OVER THE LZ WHERE WE ALL STAND! It wipes out the entire team, including myself, and costs me a precious 30 samples, 40 minutes of my life, and a painful frustration that still haunts me.

This is as relevant as anything Ryan Garcia has said in the last few months. Haney via TKO-10

John Hansen (11-3)

If you watch boxing for a year, you will see something terrifying. People die in this sport, and often. Aidos Yerbossynuly fell into a coma. Tank Davis goes to prison for domestic violence, and a week and a half later he’s released and fighting for a multi-million dollar payout. A judge openly contemptuous of blacks presents a blatant scorecard against the black fighter and conveniently in favor of his opponent, who happens to be a friend and compatriot of her husband’s boss.

Above all else, I think sending Ryan Garcia to fight on Saturday is the ugliest thing that has ever happened to me in my time in the sport.

There is clearly something wrong with this juvenile man. There is plenty of evidence that boxing could see a Kanye West or Britney Spears situation. Musicians don’t suffer brain damage or die when they miss a note. However, fit, focused, fully prepared combat sports athletes fighting at the top of their abilities can and do suffer life-ruining consequences. Garcia is not focused or fully prepared. During the preparations for this fight, he “gets high as hell” and appears at galas apparently under the influence of alcohol. But there are millions of dollars to be made, so friends, family, promoters, management, broadcasters and anyone else with room in their pockets will simply look away from the messy ailments plaguing this man.

Garcia has faster hands and stronger punches, and in another situation he could be overtaken by Devin Haney. But how can anyone assume Garcia is able to capitalize on those advantages now? Haney is the only reasonable prediction and I will stand by this decision because I really want both men to leave the arena with minimal long-term damage. Haney UD-12

Patryk Stumberg (12-2)

As a thought experiment, let’s give Ryan Garcia the benefit of the doubt. Let’s assume that his brief transformation into a side character from The Righteous Gemstones was a high-level psychological stunt and that he is, in fact, at the peak of his powers.

What has he done in the ring to suggest that his peak is even remotely close to Haney’s? Looking mortal against Gervonta Davis could be forgiven; He may be a thug, but “Tank” is a great fighter. There is no excuse for such a performance against Duarte. Garcia’s management hand-picked a lightweight with the most advantageous style imaginable, and he still looked significantly worse than when he stopped Luke Campbell.

Pure speed and power won’t allow him to beat Haney’s punch or handle Haney’s clinch, especially since both of those feats require a level of mental fortitude that Garcia simply doesn’t have. Garcia needs Haney out of the game to have any chance of winning, but I can’t imagine him shouting at someone who stayed placid against a fully focused Lomachenko. Haney takes him to school, potentially causing a overdue game stoppage if Garcia explodes under the stress of being helpless to turn things around. Haney UD-12