Deontay Wilder Ready for Bout With Harrison on April 27th

April 20th tens of thousands will flock to Tuscaloosa for the annual A-Day spring scrimmage football game, along with the other festivities around campus.

Deontay Wilder will be leaving.

The WBC Continental Americas Heavyweight championship holder will head overseas to put his title, his record, and his reputation on the line come the evening of April 27th when takes on the 2000 Olympic gold medalist and UK native Audley Harrison as part of the undercard of Amir Khan-Julio Diaz battle.

For Wilder, the trip is nothing new-he has traveled the globe performing in front of crowds that have come to see the young phenom from Tuscaloosa take on boxing talent from across the globe.  But as he boards each plane the stakes are raised as he peruses his dream of becoming the heavyweight champion of the world-a feat that would be a long way from where he started, stepping into a ring just weeks before his 21st birthday.

"I want to be the heavyweight champion in the world" Wilder said.

“But I never though in a million years I would come into the gym as this lanky kid and go to the Olympics a year later after joining the gym.  Then go into the pros, then go undefeated in the pros-I just tell people if you give God the glory, he'll give you the victory"

Now at 27 years old, he will cross the pond to take on Harrison where he hopes to keep his reputation as one of the most powerful boxers with a devastating knockout punch alive.  Wilder is quick, yet patient, always waiting for the perfect time to strike. Of his 27 knock-out victories, over half have come in this first round.

But there in the other corner will be Harrison, a gold medalist at the 2000 Olympics, and a fighter at 41, who sees this as his shot to climb back up the ladder.

"Its like he's got everything to gain, and I've got everything to lose, but he's a skillful fighter.  He's had an up and down career.  Right now he is getting his highlight off the prize fighting competition, which he's won back to back.  He's a great fighter and I'm coming into his back yard so we'll see how goes. England is rough, to the point where they like you or they don’t."

And if they don’t? "If they don't like you, you'll definitely know. But we're ready."

The fight can be seen on April 27th on Showtime.

Audio coming courtesy of The Game, airing weeknights from 6-8pm on 99.1 WDGM, 991wdgm.com, and the Radio Pup app for Androids and Iphones. The interview can be heard in its entirety below.