Deontay Wilder has revealed preparations for his WBC heavyweight title defence against Tyson Fury were derailed before they had even begun.
Wilder and Fury fought to a controversial draw in Los Angeles on Sunday (NZ time), with a late knockdown helping Wilder retain his belt.
In the aftermath of the bout, Wilder has revealed he suffered a broken arm in a sparring session 12 weeks out from training camp.
"We kept that a secret," Wilder told a group of media in LA. "I had surgery and everything. I broke my arm from right here all the way to up here," he said, gesturing to indicate an area inside of his right arm from just above his wrist to just below the elbow.
Fury started the bout with a flourish but Wilder, who was at times hesitant to throw his right hand, was able to knock the "Gypsy King" down in the ninth and 12th rounds which helped his claim for the win.
However, the controversy in the result stemmed from the scorecards with one of the three judges giving the first four rounds to Wilder. The other two judges agreed Wilder won the first, but gave rounds two, three and four to Fury.
The final scorecards read 115-111 to Wilder, 114-112 to Fury, and a 113-113 draw.
Wilder has already said he's hoping for a rematch against Fury, while Fury's camp will reportedly lodge a complaint over the judge's scorecards. Unified IBF, WBA and WBO heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has also put a call out to both fighters, saying he'd be happy to meet either in the ring.