Boxing coach Malik Scott says he had to have reconstructive surgery as Deontay Wilder hits so hard in training

Malik Scott and Deontay Wilder training. Photo by Getty Images Deontay Wilder, who returns to the ring Saturday, hits so hard that he injures his boxing coaches. Head coach Malik Scott told us he had to have reconstructive surgery on his shoulder.

Trainer Jay Deas said two years ago that he once suffered a volleyball-sized bruise. LAS VEGAS — Boxing coach Malik Scott told Insider recently that he had to have reconstructive surgery because of how hard Deontay Wilder hits him during their training sessions. Wilder is legitimately one of the hardest punchers in the sport’s history, ranking alongside other historic heavy hitters, like Earnie Shavers, Joe Louis, Mike Tyson, George Foreman, and Rocky Marciano.

Scott has been helping Wilder prepare for his fights for years, but that has come at a cost because, as he told us last month at a workout in front of media in Las Vegas, training Wilder comes with physical trauma. “I’ve had to have reconstruction surgery,” Scott said. “A lot of people see me holding pads” for Wilder “and I’m riding with the shots, they say I’m exaggerating — there’s no way.

“I’ve held the pads for top-notch heavyweights all across the world. Gerald Washington bangs me up on pads, and I love training Gerald on pads because I get to make sure he’s delivering the punch correct. “Then I come to Deontay, and you can just imagine.

He’s beating my body up, but I love this sport and I’m passionate about these fights. “Deontay Wilder and Malik Scott. Photo by Getty ImagesWilder’s next fight is against Robert Helenius as the heavyweight showdown tops a Premier Boxing Champions card Saturday at Barclays Center on Fox Sports pay-per-view.

—Al Dawson (@AlanDawsonSport) September 22, 2022Insider asked if the surgery was on Scott’s wrists, but the coach said no, it’s “up here,” and pointed to the front of his shoulder. “I have X-rays and doctors talking to me about it,” said Scott, who said his injuries began ahead of their trilogy bout against Tyson Fury, last year. “All of this is on film,” he added.

Despite Wilder’s reputation, fight fans want him to punch themJay Deas, a boxing trainer who has been a longtime member of Wilder’s team, told Insider in 2020 that people call him up on the phone and want Wilder to hit them in the face, just so they can feel what it’s like. “We have people who actually call us and write us and say, ‘I just wanna get hit. ‘ You know? ‘I’ll sign whatever release, I just wanna say I got hit.

‘”And I’m like, nope. No, no, no … we can’t do that. You think you want that, but you don’t want that.

“Deontay Wilder and Jay Deas. Photo by Getty Images”A professional heavyweight rolls with the shots, and this takes some of the steam off the shots,” Deas told Insider two years ago. “So what may look like a great connecting blow, in fact, isn’t, because you’ve turned [your head] a little bit at the last fraction of a second.

“And even the guys who get hit clean, generally speaking, would have taken a little bit off the shot. A normal person doesn’t have that experience or ability and they’d just take it flush, and that would be a horrible thing. “Scott isn’t the only trainer Wilder has injured during practice sessions while preparing for some of boxing’s biggest fights, as Deas, too, told us he was once left with “a bruise the size of a volleyball” when the fighter accidentally punched him flush on the arm.

“You just don’t want to get hit [by Wilder],” Deas told Insider. “Your life is much better if you do not get hit by him!”Scott and Deas have been preparing Wilder for HeleniusRobert Helenius. Photo by Getty ImagesMalik Scott, together with Joey Scott and Deas, have been the core members of the combat sports team that has been responsible for overseeing Wilder’s comeback, following back-to-back losses to Fury in 2020 and 2021.

Insider understands that Premier Boxing Champions is hopeful that Wilder can deliver the kind of highlight-reel knockout that had been synonymous with his rise in the sport. “Wilder’s presence in the division adds spice because he’s the most electrifying heavyweight, in my opinion, of all time,” Malik Scott told Insider. “He’s the most devastating puncher in the history of the sport.

The things I’ve seen him do to people [in training] with 20-ounce gloves has been horrific — very, very bad. “Scott expects to see the same in the ring on Saturday when Wilder comes face-to-face with Helenius. “It’s going to be a systematic breakdown,” said Scott.

“We’re going to dress him up and take him out. “Read the original article on Insider.