2016 Maxboxing knockout of the year

Sub Lead01-Jan-17by John J. Raspanti

By John J. Raspanti

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The knockout.

The most shocking blow in boxing.

It’s sudden, explosive, and defining--the final exclamation mark on a fight.

WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder dented challenger Artur Szpilka’s chin in Round nine last January in New York City.

Until the combustible ending, the match was competitive.

Szpilka, a native of Poland, said a few days before the bout that he was coming to America to win. His words would prove to be prophetic.

"I will not be afraid of Wilder,” Szpilka told www.fightnews.com “I will be close enough to hit him. I will not wait, because he can hit really hard with his right hand. Even if I lose by KO, I will fight until the end. I will not go in the ring against Wilder just to survive – I will be there to beat him, take risks.”

Szpilka was honest. He came to fight, but that right hand he mentioned, would be his downfall.

Wilder, who stands 6-7 and weighs close to 230 pounds, entered the bout with 35 knockouts in 36 fights. Though awkward at times, the champion can really punch. Nobody doubts his power.

Szpilka,a southpaw, forced the action in the opening rounds. Wilder was having problems timing Szpilka. He missed more punches than he landed.

He finally dealt his signature blow in Round four.

Szpilka sneered, while Wilder smiled. Szpilka tagged Wilder with hooks in the next heat.

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Wilder was back in control in Round six. He was finding his rhythm, while Szpilka soldiered on.

After Round eight ended, Wilder looked like a guy who knew the end was near. He met Szpilka in the center of the ring in Round nine. It was obvious he was looking to unleash that crazy right hand. Szpilka bounced on his toes and moved away. Though at a disadvantage in height in reach, he had done well at times.

Wilder popped out his jab. He was tempting his prey like a spider does fly. Szpilka bobbed and weaved, looking to land his own powerful blow. He did two minutes into the round. Wilder ignored the punch and concentrated. The right hand was coming. It was only a matter of when.

Two minutes and fifteen seconds into the stanza, the right detonated off Szpilka’s jaw. The game challenger collapsed like a house of cards. He didn’t move as the referee counted him out.

Wilder lifted his arms. The fight was emphatically over. All it took was one punch.

Deontay Wilder’s devastating win over Artur Szpilka is Maxboxing’s Knockout of the year.