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Swedish-born Finnish professional boxer Robert Helenius was Deontay Wilder's sparring partner heading into the latter's fight with Tyson Fury on October 9.
Helenius himself competed on the undercard of the recently concluded Fury vs. Wilder 3 pay-per-view event and delivered a masterful performance. The 37-year-old defended his WBA gold heavyweight title in a rematch with Adam Kownacki on the night.
Robert Helenius knocked Kownacki out in the fourth round in their first fight. This time around, he won via disqualification in the sixth round after Kownacki hit him with repeated low-blows.
Kownacki dominated the initial proceedings in the first fight. It looked like Helenius was on the back-foot until he stepped on the gas and found the finish in the fourth round. This led to many fans claiming the win was a fluke and that Kownacki would win a rematch. The rubber fight, however, was completely dominated by Helenius.
Robert Helenius wasn't bothered despite repeatedly being hit with illegal strikes during rematch with Adam Kownacki
Helenius moved to 31-3 following the win against Kownacki, who has only lost to the Swedish-born Finnish boxer in his career. After the fight, Robert Helenius claimed that he would have finished the bout one way or another, pointing out the one-sided nature of the contest.
"It was good. Either way, it would have been a stoppage. I had a lot of good shots tonight and he didn’t have any. I expected it because what does he have? Don’t get me wrong – he’s a good brawler, but I’ve been fighting brawlers for 20 years. I know how to deal with them, even if they are hitting me low or behind the head. That doesn’t bother me.”
Heading into the fight, Robert Helenius said sparring regularly with Deontay Wilder has helped him prepare for the rematch with Kownacki. He said they both benefited from each other in training camp and hailed 'The Bronze Bomber' as one of the hardest hitters in the game.
