Robert Helenius refuses to have his name thrown on a junk heap of faded heavyweights.
The Finnish heavyweight has amassed a record of 31-3 (20 KOs) over 14 years as a professional heavyweight, and he tells Bad Left Hook that he has found a new love for boxing ahead of his Oct. 15 fight against the Return of Deontay Wilder.
“I have returned to my roots,” explains Helenius, deep in a camp on the island of Åland, in the middle of the Baltic Sea. “Life is simpler here. I have my own gym and I can train whenever I want.
“Besides, I am also left alone. The population is only around 25,000 here, so people soon get bored of seeing me and saying hello,” she adds with a laugh.
“I’m channeling that Viking spirit,” he continued. “I’ve made a big commitment to eating right over the last couple of years and I’m starting to see a big difference. I cut out all carbs and focused on eating meats and eggs; I guess you could say Rocky style. It seems to fit my body, which would make sense since that’s what all my ancestors would have eaten.”
Helenius speaks calmly and with unmistakable confidence. His 6’7” frame helps this self-confidence, but he hasn’t always been able to keep his head up in the sport. The unlikely back-to-back wins over Adam Kownacki have sent his stock skyrocketing after a career of scattered opportunities, some in the wilderness of boxing across Europe.
“It’s been a tough road for me in the sport,” he continued. “I have had many ups and downs for 25 years, amateur and professional, but this fight gives me the opportunity to get one step closer to what I always dreamed of: fighting for a world heavyweight title. We’re making sure everything is okay for this fight. I can’t let an opportunity like this pass without giving 100 percent.”
Helenius is no stranger to Deontay Wilder. The pair have shared numerous rounds of combat prior to the “Bronze Bomber” trilogy fights with Tyson Fury, and were it not for their upcoming fight, they would consider themselves friends. This familiarity also extends to the American’s dynamite right hand; something that Helenius has had first-hand experience of receiving.
“I’ve tried a couple of those; I don’t plan to try any more. They are explosive. But we’ve done a lot in this camp to try to help avoid getting hit by one of their big shots, and to be honest, those are my best attributes overall. We’ve done a lot of work on head movement, reaction time and footwork. This is what allowed me to be so successful as a hobbyist, so it comes quite naturally to me.
“But Deontay is a good guy. We’ve had a lot of good times at the camps, but he knows as well as I do that it’s all about business now. Anyway, I’m not that kind of person who is going to talk badly about another fighter. But I’m happy to turn off my emotions and show aggression inside the ring.”
If irons sharpen irons, Elecampane’s tools should be sharp. He has shared previous camps with Wladimir Klitschko, Alexander Povetkin, Anthony Joshua and David Haye, as well as gaining invaluable experience from over 250 amateur fights around the world. He is the definition of experienced and is a true believer that heavyweights can peak at a mature age.
“I’m ready to bring my A game,” he said. “Being an underdog has always suited me. It turns me on a lot more than when I’m in danger of bypassing an opponent. The adrenaline will be pumping like never before on Saturday and that will help me.
“Aggression is going to be key in this fight. I’m going to need to push Deontay forward and not let him dictate the pace. He is an excellent boxer; he has proven it time and time again.”
Wilder has not fought since a second loss to Tyson Fury in October of last year. His record now reads 42-2-1 (41 KOs), with the “Gypsy King” holding the mantle of the only fighter Wilder hasn’t been able to keep down as a pro. But Helenius doesn’t feel these back-to-back losses are taking too much of a toll on the Alabama boxer’s mindset.
“I’m preparing as if Wilder was still undefeated,” he insists. “I don’t think the Fury fights have taken too much away from him. Also, he was able to show real improvements in the third fight. I’m in the best shape of my life and because of my conditioning I should be able to stay fully on for the full 12 rounds, something other fighters have struggled with against Wilder.
“If anything, he’s shown real toughness in his last two fights with Fury, something we really didn’t know about before that, so I’m going to have to be prepared for this. At the end of the day, Wilder is just another bump in the road to achieving my dream.”
Helenius is convinced that he has put in all the necessary effort to finish his contest inside Brooklyn’s Barclays Center as the winner. A dedicated schedule of a 5-mile run in the morning and boxing work in the afternoon is booked to devour a “kilogram of meat,” and his ability to avoid serious injury for the first time in his career is revealing new Benefits.
But whatever the outcome, Helenius is in the business of squeezing as much life out of his career as possible.
“I have a lot of good years left,” he says with conviction.
Life is sweet for the “Nordic Nightmare,” and his refusal to drink at the Last Chance Saloon is what makes him a living loser against Wilder.
