Deontay Wilder vs Chris Arreola Breakdown
Ryan Hafey / Premier Boxing Champions
The main event of the evening pit WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder 36-0 (35 KOs) against veteran Chris "Nightmare" Arreola 36-4-1 (31KOs). This was Wilder's 4th defense of his title. It was a fairly quiet round 1 for both fighters. Arreola gave Wilder different looks without throwing anything. Wilder simply controlled distance with his jab throughout the round. Round 2 saw Arreola trying to apply pressure and back Wilder up, still without throwing much early in the round. Wilder continued to throw his jab out there with an occasional left hook. Arreola finally unleashed a fury of punches against Wilder as he had him against the ropes.
In round 3, Arreola closed distance more throughout the round and let his hands go to the body of Wilder when he was able to get close. Wilder was occasionally able to land check hooks on Arreola as he tried to come in.
Arreola continued to apply pressure in round 4 and land to the body of Wilder when he was within close range of the champion. Wilder for the majority of the round controlled distance with his jab. He was able to knockdown his opponent after landing a right hand and then a left flush sending Arreola to the canvas toward the end of the round. Wilder was able to land another thunderous right hand before the bell rung.
Round 5 saw Wilder doing more of the same, keeping his jab in the face of Arreola. Arreola was unable to get on the inside as Wilder threw a left hook every time his opponent closed distance. Arreola's only offense was to the body but he was not able to close distance often.
Deontay Wilder was able to keep distance with jab once again in round 6 against the veteran Arreola. Arreola caught Wilder on the ropes in the middle of the round and landed to the body of Wilder. Wilder was able to land an uppercut while they were on the inside and immediately got back to throwing his jab.
Wilder looked bored at times in the early stages of round 7 allowing Arreola to get inside and land rights to the body of the champion. Deontay played to the crowd, wiggling his hips and making noises. He was able to land an uppercut to back his competitor off of him. Arreola's face was a mess as he came out for round 8 after getting hit from jabs repetitively all night from Wilder. Wilder opened up a few times throwing left hooks of the jab. He was able to follow up with the right hand throughout the round as Arreola appeared on his last legs. Arreola was able to survive the round receiving a final combination from the champion in the corner. Arreola's corner decided it was enough for the veteran and called for an end to the fight.
Wilder ended the bout with the final punch stats of 152/346, landing 44% of his shots. He also improves his record to 37-0 (36 KOs). In the post fight interview Wilder stated, "My goal is to unify the division. Whoever got those belts, that's who I want! Of course I want the Furys. Of course I want the Joshuas. The question is, do they want me?" Wilder also mentioned he may have broke his hand in the 3rd or 4th round of the bout.