Deontay Wilder has posted a strange video in which he cuddles and chats with a statue of himself that was erected in his honour last year in his hometown.
The former world heavyweight champion was honoured with a statue for his achievements at the elite level in boxing last summer in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. And he has credited the city's decision to build the monument as part of his reason for returning to the ring after two brutal defeats at the hands of Tyson Fury.
Wilder is currently one fight away from being named the No.1 contender for Fury's WBC world heavyweight title, which could see the governing body force through a fourth bout between the pair. And while he may need a pep talk for such a fight, it was he who was giving a speech in his wacky video, where he spoke to the statue, giving it inspirational messages and embracing it.
"It’s okay to love the goodness out of yourself," Wilder wrote in the caption of the video, which has been viewed over 100,000 times on Twitter. "Most times self-motivation is a must, then at times it’s all we need to stay alive. #BombZquad #TilThisDay #GenerationalWealth."
In the video, Wilder can be seen engaging in a one-sided conversation with the statue, saying: "How you doing? Merry Christmas, happy New Year to you. You doing alright? That's good, you been holding up? You look cold right there I'm going to have to get you a blanket and warm you up.
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"But other than that you're looking good, man. I'm proud of you and everything you've done. More to do, though, I'll see you soon, alright?" At the end of the video he walks off camera before making one last strange move by loud moaning before the 30-second clip finishes.
Wilder will have to face Andy Ruiz Jr next in order to confirm his spot as the mandatory challenger for Fury's belt, which the Brit will defend in an undisputed clash against Oleksandr Usyk this March. He returned in October with a vicious knockout of Robert Helenius, while Ruiz has had two fights since losing his unified world titles to Anthony Joshua in December 2019.
Ruiz struggled through a comeback fight with Chris Arreola in 2021 before splitting with yet another head coach in Eddy Reynoso and the Canelo Alvarez team. He returned again in September when he faced Luis Ortiz, dominating in a much more impressive performance to put him within one win of a title opportunity.
