Deontay Wilder explains what went through his head when Tyson Fury stood up after 12-round knockdown

In the 12th round of his riveting title fight with England’s Tyson Fury, WBC heavyweight champ Deontay Wilder uncorked a combination that seemed to secure his victory. In an instant, Fury was supine on the canvas, arms at his sides, staring up at the Jumbotron. It looked like it was all over.

But then Fury got up — and somehow, won the remainder of the round. The two fighters reached the final bell, and the judges scored the fight a draw.

Speaking at the post-fight press conference, Deontay Wilder opened up on his 12th-round knockdown of Tyson Fury. Like everybody else watching, he believe he’d sent Fury into the abyss. And like everybody else watching, he had to pick his jaw up off the floor when the Brit returned to his feet.

“I thought I had him out of there. Right hand, followed with a left hook. I saw his eyes roll into the back of his head. I was like ‘it’s over’. Only God knows how he got back up,” he said (via BBC).

Deontay Wilder also opened up on the controversial outcome of the fight, assuring that he feels he did enough to win.

“I felt it was close but that the two knockdowns put me over the top,” said the American.

“I have questions circulating with the count. Fury was laid out and they hesitated a bit,” he added. “The magic part of it is being able to beat one another up and at the end saying ‘I love you, bro’.

“The gameplan was to go to the body a bit more. I lost the plan as I was trying to get him out of there. I know when I try to get them out of there the plan goes. That’s a lesson I learned a long time ago but I went back to it. My emotions got the better of me.”

How did you score last night’s WBC heavyweight title fight between Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury?

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 12/2/2018.