Deontay Wilder Not Interested in WBC Franchise Title!
Arguably the second biggest name holding a WBC title behind middleweight and light heavyweight champion Canelo Alvarez, heavyweight Deontay Wilder has no interest in becoming the third champion to be elevated as the WBC’s “franchise champion”.
Currently, Canelo and lightweight unified champion Vasiliy Lomachenko are the only current fighters who can stake claim to that title. There has been a tremendous amount of due criticism directed at WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman.
The 34 year old heavyweight has made nine consecutive title defenses. The latest will happen on November 23 in a rematch against Luis Ortiz (31-1, 26KOs).
At his media day, Wilder was asked about his thoughts on potentially becoming the latest fighter to be elevated to franchise champion of the WBC.
“Many people ask me about the franchise belt or whatever. I don’t know much about it. It’s what I’m hearing is that it allows you stay a champion where you don’t have to fight mandatories and stuff like that.
“If that’s the case then I’m not interested. I want the mandatories! That’s what makes the sport guys work their way up. They work hard to become number one, number two and then become a mandatory. Why would you crown someone that?
“I love being able to have a mandatory. Him sitting and the more he waits, the more he gets frustrated about certain things. Then, when the fight comes, you’ve had me waiting all this time already. It’s always the build-up to the fight, and when you take that away, when you take certain things away from boxing, you take the charisma away from it. You take the excitement away from it.
And that’s what I don’t want to do. I don’t want to take the excitement away from it.”
Will Wilder’s stance on the “franchise champion” status cause Sulaiman to change his thought process on this matter and reconsider?
Only time will tell.
By: Jerrell Fletcher
