Deontay Wilder vs. Dominic Breazeale

On May 18, 2019, Wilder defended his WBC heavyweight title against mandatory challenger Dominic Breazeale, who was ranked #4 by the WBC.^[2]

Prior to the fight, Wilder had again made controversial comments about wanting to kill an opponent in the ring, saying he was "trying to get a body on my record", and that "[boxing] is the only sport where you can kill a man and get paid for it at the same time."^[3] This was not the first time Wilder had alluded to killing an opponent, having made similar remarks previously in 2017 about Bermane Stiverne.^[4] However, despite the pre-fight animosity, the two men reconciled after the fight's conclusion, with Wilder saying "I've told him [Breazeale] I love him and I want to see him go home to his family".^[5]

Breazeale was knocked out in the first round with 43 seconds left in the first round. Wilder caught him with a powerful right which sent Breazeale flat on his back and unable to continue with the referee waving off the contest after reaching the ten count.^[6][5] This marked his second ever professional loss.^[7]

It was the highest-viewed Showtime boxing event of the year. Live viewership was recorded at 886,000 viewers. When accounting for all viewing platforms, including live broadcasts, on-demand initial replays, and live streaming, the total viewership reached 1,100,000.^[8]