The story of David and Goliath from the biblical book of Samuel tells the story of a Philistine giant felled by a young boy in perhaps the greatest underdog story ever told.
Standing at ‘four cubits and a span’ according to the oldest manuscripts, Goliath supposedly measured 6 feet 9 inches – the same height as lineal heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.
It was perhaps no surprise then to hear Deontay Wilder referencing the parable when he faced off against the ‘Gypsy King’ on Wednesday night ahead of their world heavyweight title clash.
Fury said as they clashed: “You’ve come to get your ass whopped, p****. Look how small you are, you midget.”
To which the WBC champion retorted: “You were the one on the ground. I was the one standing on top of you. You ever heard of David and Goliath? You know that story of what happened? It’s going to happen to you.”
The American is not exactly the ideal candidate to play the proverbial David in this situation, standing at 6 feet 7 inches himself. But the second clash of these two giants promises to be just as enthralling as their first fight back in December 2018.
Never before have two men so large shared a ring and with such huge stakes; undefeated records, world titles and the claim to be the best heavyweight in the world are all on the line.
But regardless of what transpires on Saturday night, neither man can lay claim to be the tallest heavyweight in history.
In fact, the list of the biggest heavyweights in history make these two men look rather small in comparison.
Scroll down to see some of the tallest boxers in history.
Deontay Wilder vs Tyson Fury press conference clashNikolai Valuev – 7 feet 0 inches (2.13 metres)
The Russian will be forever remembered by British boxing fans for his heavyweight title fight with David Haye in 2009 when he surrendered the WBA crown to the ‘Hayemaker’.
However, Valuev’s story was actually a tragic one. Both his parents are 5 feet 5 inches tall, with the 46-year-old’s incredible height down to gigantism complicated by acromegaly.
After defeating John Ruiz in 2005, Valuev became the tallest and heaviest heavyweight champion in history as he tipped the scales at 323lbs (23 stone).
After defeat to Ruslan Chagaev in 2007, Valuev reclaimed his WBA crown against Ruiz in a rematch before defeating Evander Holyfield in his first defence. The 46-year-old gave away almost 100lbs in weight as he suffered a controversial majority decision defeat in 2008.
In a bout billed as ‘David vs Goliath’, Valuev faced former undisputed and lineal cruiserweight champion Haye in Nuremberg almost a year later and was almost stopped by a clubbing left hand from the Brit.
Three days after the points decision loss, Valuev announced his retirement with his doctor claiming he was treating the giant for ‘serious bone and joint problems’. In 2011, it was confirmed he had a brain tumour and was forced to go under the knife twice in order to stabilise the situation.
Taishan Dong – 7 feet 0 inches (2.13 metres)
Dong Jianjun tried a plethora of different sports before eventually settling on boxing, where he assumed the moniker Taishan – after the mountain in the Shandong province of China.
After trying out at basketball, hockey and kickboxing, Dong decided to take up professional boxing after flattening MMA legend Bob Sapp in a kickboxing bout.
With six wins from six fights and six knockouts, Dong has not been seen in a boxing ring since December. He was trained by the legendary Buddy McGrit and worked with Golden Boy Promotions.
However, the 31-year-old was training with the WWE in 2018 at their Performance Center in Orlando. Although he left the organisation voluntarily, it could be we get to see Dong in the squared circle once again.
Julius Long – 7 feet 1 inch (2.16 metres)
The American boxer, who now resides in New Zealand, decided to call himself the ‘Towering Inferno’ and it could not be a more apt nickname.
Standing at more than 7 feet tall and with a reach of 90 inches, Long is an absolute physical phenomenon.
Although he has failed to achieve anything more than journeyman status, the 42-year-old has faced the likes of Audley Harrison, Samuel Peter, Lucas Browne and Kevin Johnson.
After moving to New Zealand to help David Tua train for his bout against Alexander Utsinov, Long chose to live in Auckland permanently and drew his last fight back in August.
Jim Cully – 7 feet 2 inches (2.18 metres)
Cully incredibly managed to obtain just a 50% win ratio from his six fights, despite standing head and shoulders above his opponents.
Making his debut in 1942 at the Opera House in Cork, Cully claimed the Irish National Heavyweight title against Butcher Howell with a stoppage victory.
However, the US-based fighter relinquished his title in his following fight as Cully was stopped by Chris Cole in Dalymount Park in June 1942. Cole floored Cully seven times before the Tipperary-man saw his corner throw in the towel.
Cully won twice more and lost twice more before retiring in 1948 after his TKO loss to Earl Pierce in Buffalo, New York.
Gogea Mitu – 7 feet 4 inches (2.24 metres)
The tallest professional boxer in the history of the long and distinguished sport, Mitu is also the tallest Romanian in history.
One of 11 children, Mitu was extremely intelligent as a child despite never having been to school. Doctors and scientists sought to examine the freakishly tall child, who had taught himself to rtead by the age of three.
However, a circus career was the first point of call for the giant teen and he was working for a company in Prague, as well as doing shows in Monaco. But an Italian boxer and talent scout by the name of Umberto Lancia saved the Romanian from a life in a tent and taught him how to box.
After spending time at the Paris School for Boxing, he fought three experienced journeymen. On his way back to Bucharest, Mitu caught a cold and he began to deteriorate and his condition worsened after he was poisoned in hospital. He died at the age of 26 after contracting tuberculosis.
Although he only had three professional fights, Mitu never got out of the second round as he knocked all three of them out and remains the tallest professional boxer in history.
talkSPORT is to broadcast the exclusive audio rights to Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder’s highly anticipated rematch on Saturday, February 22 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. We will bring you nine hours of uninterrupted coverage from 10pm through to 7am GMT Sunday morning, including all the build up, action and post-fight analysis
ncG1vNJzZmiskaG4tLzOq6tnm5%2BifLS8zquraJqfrbavs45vbmpxZGl8tcXSqKVmnqWnxm6wxKilrZmpYsSquMOeqWabn6K9or7EZp%2BeoZedwW7DxKKeoaxdp7Kir8dmq5qknJrAtXnHnpivsaeatqi002aZqLCVp8ButMisq6iqqWK%2FprnArZqhZw%3D%3D