Greg Leon: What's good, champion? How's everything going in preparation for your May 18th bout versus Dominic Breazeale? Deontay Wilder: "Oh man, May 18th I cannot wait. You know Dominic Breazeale has the perfect alias name, Trouble. I've been telling him he's in trouble. This is what I needed, I needed this boost for my career. It's just a rebirth for my career and I can't wait for May 18th. I'm very passionate about what I say and what I do, and it's going to be amazing. This is something that people are going to be in for a treat. There's people who want to see a lot of things from Deontay Wilder and they're going to see them. I've buckled myself back down, I've been investing in myself a little bit more and I feel like a refreshed king. I know the cards that I hold in this division and that's why I bet on myself because I know that I hold all the keys and I possess the power."

 

GL: Is Breazeale going the distance? Are you looking to get him out of there quicker than Anthony Joshua did?

 

Deontay Wilder: "Breazeale don't belong in the ring with me and he will go early. I don't see this fight going no more than five rounds and I'm probably going to cut him down in three. He doesn't belong with me and I'm going to show everyone he doesn't. It's going to be a fun event while it lasts. I'm looking forward to Dominic Breazeale being in the best of shape of his life because whenever somebody is fighting me they get themself to their best and they should be, because I am a dangerous man in this division. I possess something that they all wish they had, but it's natural for me. My mindset is different than all of them because I know I am the king. I'm expecting the best Dominic Breazeale has ever been so he can come in there and give me his best challenge, but then when Deontay Wilder gets in there, shows up and shows out, they'll know it's on."

 

GL: When you say he doesn't belong in the ring with you, do you think he's done enough since his loss to Anthony Joshua to warrant the shot at you? You could look at a handful of guys out there, Adam Kownacki jumps to mind, that have fought comparable opposition but aren't getting the shot. When you make the remark  that this guy doesn't belong in the ring with you, is that based on you feeling he doesn't deserve it?

 

DW: "I don't feel he deserves it. I don't feel he deserves anything, especially to be in there with me. He's in the position he's in and boxing is a funny business, it's a very funny business. He fought his way to his spot, so who could blame him? But the elite level that I'm on, there's levels to this and we all know that, and he's yet to fight anybody of my caliber to even warrant him being in the ring with me. Nobody he could work with could get him prepared for Deontay Wilder. It's like I told Tyson Fury, I told him you have to be perfect for all twelve rounds, I only have to be perfect for two seconds."

 

GL: What was the primary you choose to stay with PBC and Showtime as opposed to the offers from both ESPN and DAZN?

 

DW: "ESPN and DAZN they had wanted a long-term [contract] on me. I like to dictate my own career and I like to see where it's going for myself. When you're giving these guys so many years, you're giving them too much control. I don't like people to have too much control over me and my career because I know what it is and I know where it's going. DAZN just left out information from us, they tried to hide certain information from us and from that point you can't go further with no deal when people are trying to hide things. I'm not going to get into what it was but we all know boxing is a snake in the grass business, and that's why you've got to keep the grass cut because they're always slithering around. DAZN was one of those snakes slithering around. They wanted to put out there a big number, and it was a big number and being human you see that and you automatically think Oh My God, but you need to know what's going on behind the details of that number. I'm not no fool, my mother ain't raise that."

 

GL: So you're betting on yoursef because Deontay Wilder has a better chance to fully maximize his potential as an independent contractor and BombZquad Promotions being the company in front of him, correct?

 

DQ: "There you go! Once we have a strong American heavyweight in the world, the power is back. When the heavyweight division is lit everyone eats. It's nothing like a heavyweight champion of the world, especially an American. And to possess the power that I have, man, I could see the story unfold now, I'm a living walking icon. A lot of people will try to doubt me and deny me, and I know I have a long way to go, but the thing about it is my willingness, my eagerness and motivation to prove so many people wrong. They've already doubted me every step of the way thus far and each and every time I've proven every one of them wrong and I'm still TILL THIS DAY, and it won't be no different moving forward. I am the best heavyweight in the world, I will reunite the heavyweight division. There's no more exciting heavyweight in the world than me. I am the most dangerous and exciting heavyweight, forget champions, heavyweight in the game period. I know what I possess and everyone is going to want somebody like me, so why would I give that all away when I can bet in on myself. Why would I give myself to you when I could please myself?"

 

GL: What's BombZquad Promotions going to be? A lot of boxers have started promotional companies that don't really go anywhere and are just companies to promote themselves. Are you planning to sign other talent? Are you planning to promote events that you won't be fighting on?

 

DW: "Most definitely. I'm looking to not only promote myself, but to promote others as well. We're going to be very strategic about who we pick and what fighters we want. I'm not going to be in a great rush, but I've already got a great group of people around me, I've got a great team around me and they're all ready to go. We're just setting up a lot of the things that are going to come with it. This isn't just going to be about my promotions, I'm looking to do something with this company and be a top player in the game. I want to keep boxing alive. I'm very serious about this and so are my people. We believe that we're going to take this all the way to the top. The best thing about me is that I love people and I want to see them make it and do great, even if they're doing better than me. I'm going to be very passionate about who I work with and who I select. 

 

"I want them to reach their full potential as fighters because I know how hard it is and where I came from. It's like I tell my little brother, I don't want you to be like me, I want you to be better than me. If I work with a fighter that does better than I do I would be very satisfied with that. I can promote them without being jealous of their success and I look forward to boosting them up and speaking about them. I'm just very excited man, I'm looking forward to May 18th, I feel like I've been born again as the heavyweight champion. My power has grown, my popularity has grown, my profile has grown and I've handled it very well because I've seen these days. It's been foretold, my grandmother always told me I was annointed by God and at 33 years old I'm just walking in my manifestation and watching it unfold before my eyes. America knows that not only do they have a badass representing them, they've got a guy who loves all people and wants to see the world do great...not just change for good, but great. There's greatness inside all of us."

 

GL: You sound very excited about May 18th, but at first May 18th was supposed to be the mega-rematch. How did you first deal with the news that Tyson Fury had gone in a different direction? Did you feel like it was going to be tough for you to get up for anybody else at that moment in time?

 

DW: "I understand the game and this division. In this boxing industry you must watch out for self first because other's are watching out for themselves. You're the talent and you're carrying the whole thing so we have to look out for ourselves, especially when you're in a dangerous fight like he was with me. I gave Fury a concussion that night, I scared not only him but his entire team and people in his family."

 

GL: A concussion? At least one brother.

 

DW: "These are facts, and not only did I scare him, I scared his family and his team, they don't want him to fight me anymore. I got so many connections and so many people, I've heard so many things, even from his family members, they don't want him to fight me again. When you get hit by me you're never the same. Your head is not meant to be shook. When guys get knocked out like that they're going to get knocked out over and over again because your chin gets more and more vulnerable each and every time. This man doesn't even know how he got on the ground and he doesn't know how he got up. That is scary as a figher. How do you not know the when, what and why? Of course they're going to want him to have a warm-up just to make sure his marbles are still there and make sure I didn't loosen up them too much. A second fight with him would be even easier for me because I did what I was able to do being the excited and wild Deontay Wilder, not the calm cool and collected Wilder who can make it look so much easier in the ring. You guys are going to be the wintess for the show."

 

GL: What did you learn from that fight that you feel will make you a better fighter moving forward?

 

DW: "It was a clarification to myself that I just got to stay patient. I don't need to get riled up, I wasn't under any pressure but the excitement to see the world show up...I mean when you have to do everything on your own and you see the light at the end of the tunnel it makes you feel good. It's very hard to do this with boxing in America because boxing is not number one here like it is in these other countries. Every time I've fought, I've had to fight against other sports and it's always been that way for me. To finally have a free day for me, Deontay Wilder day, it's very exciting because I'm looking forward to a ton of people showing up and tuning into see my talent. They already know what I'm there to do, knock somebody out. I realized that I'm blessed and annointed and don't need to rush anything to get rid of a guy."

 

GL: With this rivaling triumvirate that we have in boxing with PBC, ESPN and DAZN, do you think we'll ever see you fight Anthony Joshua or Tyson Fury? Where's your head at on those fights right now?

 

DW: "The people know that if there's any fight that's going to be made in the heavyweight division that's going to make everybody in America tune in, then it has to involve Deontay Wilder. The Ortiz fight was high risk and low reward, so forget about the big guarantees, I've taken less to make the best fights I can. I'm taking a lot of risk for my career because I could be doing a fight for a lot more than I'm making, but my heart is a king's and I'm not going to lower myself. With the $15M flat fee for Joshua, I knew I was lowering myself because I knew what that fight could be, but I was willing to take those measures to prove myself as the king. If they want to make the biggest fights then I have to be a part of that because I'm what makes the heavyweight division exciting. I know there's people who do big numbers in other countries and stuff, but it's nothing like a Deontay Wilder connected to that. I hold all the keys and my record speaks for itself. I've put everybody I've been in the ring with on their ass and will continue to do so come May 18th. The universe is working and these fights will happen and it will manifest sooner than people expect. I don't want the people to be discouraged, I want them to be encouraged because they're going to get what they want to see. It may take a little time because other people want to build because of their situations, but I will be a part of all these fights when they happen because there can only be one face, one name, one champion and he goes by the name of Deontay Wilder."

 

GL: Closing thoughts for the fans.

 

DW: "I want to tell all of my fans that I love them from the bottom of my heart. It's taken us a very long time to get to this point, but we're here. Along the while we've been waiting, marinating and observing everything else that has been going on to prepare ourselves for this date and time. We're not here for the short term, I'm going to be the long term heavyweight champion. I encourage everybody to speak it, believe and do it and I've done it. Not only do I tell you, I practice what I preach and those who didn't believe, there's still room for you guys too. I'm looking to take over the world. Thanks so much, I'll see everyone on May 18th at the Barclay's Center, Wilder vs. Breazeale, you don't want to miss this one. BOMBZQUAD!!!!!