Deontay Wilder, the "Bronze Bomber" is expected to get back in the ring this June to make his first defense of the WBC heavyweight title in his home state of Alabama. More importantly, he's expected to do it on network television under the Premier Boxing Champions spotlight, where millions of Americans might get a glimpse of the next great American heavyweight.
Wilder won his title with a convincing unanimous decision victory over Bermane Stiverne in January, the first win of Wilder's career that didn't come by knockout. Wilder injured his hand in that fight-that's the reason for his long layoff-but now that he's healthy, Wilder expects to be an active champion.
He's expected to fight June 13 against unheralded Eric Molina, a 33-year-old whose most notable bout is a first-round knockout loss to Chris Arreola, another PBC fighter. Molina is ranked just inside the Top 50 fighters in the heavyweight division per Boxrec.com, so this appears to be a hometown showcase for Wilder, and a tune up for a bigger fight in the fall.
Wilder told Fight Hype "I told people once I became a champion, I was going to be an active champion and I'm keeping my oath to that. Forget about that fight once or twice a year. We're going to fight three or four times a year. If you ready, I'm ready. I'm lookin' to get three fights out of this year. I'm fittin' to rearrange the game of boxing in the heavyweight division."
The hope would be Wilder building toward a mega fight with lineal heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko down the road, but it's unclear at this time whether fighters in the PBC are able to fight opponents outside of adviser Al Haymon's stable. If not, Wilder might take on former champion Arreola at some point.
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