Tyson “The Gypsy King” Fury defeated Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder by seventh-round stoppage to capture the WBC Heavyweight Championship Saturday night headlining a historic mega PPV event from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

“A big shout out to Deontay Wilder,” said Fury. “He came here tonight, and he manned up, and he really did show the heart of a champion. I hit him with a clean right that dropped him, and he got back up. He is a warrior. He will be back. He will be champion again. But I will say, the king has returned to the top of the throne!”

“Things like this happen,” said Wilder. “The best man won tonight, but my corner threw in the towel, and I was ready to go out on my shield. I had a lot of things going on heading into this fight. It is what it is, but I make no excuses tonight. I’m a warrior. He had a great performance, and we will be back stronger.”

The highly anticipated rematch was the most eagerly awaited heavyweight fight in decades after their controversial split draw in 2018. After an unprecedented promotion, the two heavyweight giants traded leather in the middle of the ring in front of a sold-out crowd of 15,816.

While both men landed good shots in the first two rounds, Fury broke through in round three with a right hook that put Wilder down late in the round. While Wilder was able to make it through the round and continue fighting, his legs appeared weakened, and in round five, Fury scored another knockdown, this time with a body shot.

Referee Kenny Bayless deducted a point from Fury late in round five, but it didn’t stop Fury from coming forward and continuing to use his height and weight advantage to push Wilder around the ring. In round seven, Fury had Wilder cornered and unloaded with a series of power punches that prompted Wilder’s corner to stop the bout, which the referee officially did at 1:39 of the round.

According to CompuBox, Fury was the busier and more effective puncher, out throwing Wilder 267 to 141 and out landing him 82 to 34, including big fifth and sixth rounds where he landed 16 and 14 power punches respectively.

Wilder’s corner made the right decision, or should I say his trainer, Mark Breland, made the right decision. At the post-fight press conference, Wilder’s co-trainer, Jay Deas, made it clear that he disagreed with Breland for throwing in the towel.

“Mark threw the towel,” Deas said. “I didn’t think he should have. Deontay’s the kind of guy that’s a ‘go out on his shield’ kind of guy.”

However, Wilder’s eardrum was busted up, and his equilibrium was off. The way Fury was landing; Wilder could have gotten permanently damaged. Breland was a great fighter in his day, and a fighter knows when a guy has had enough. Wilder had enough on Saturday night, and thank God, Breland saved him from himself.

Photo: Ryan Hafey/Premier Boxing Champions