Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller Outlasts Lenier Pero in Heavyweight Slugfest, Calls Out Deontay Wilder
Brooklyn’s Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller picked up the biggest win of his career Saturday night at Fontainebleau Las Vegas, outpointing previously undefeated Cuban contender Lenier Pero by unanimous decision in a 12-round WBA heavyweight title eliminator. The scorecards read 117-111, 117-111, and 115-113.
This was a true heavyweight slugfest from the opening bell. Both fighters combined to throw more than 1,650 punches across 12 rounds, with Miller averaging an absurd 85 punches per round and landing 24 of them per round on average. He simply did not stop coming forward.
Miller, now 28-1-2 with 22 knockouts, used his trademark high work rate and upper body movement to consistently outwork Pero on the inside. Pero (13-1, 8 KOs) had moments and tried to mount a late rally in the twelfth, but Miller closed strong, trading power shots in the final ten seconds before the final bell.
The win moves Miller into prime position for a WBA heavyweight title shot. As the WBA’s now top-ranked contender, “Big Baby” wasted no time calling out the biggest puncher in the division.
“Deontay Wilder, where you at?” Miller said in his post-fight interview. “Brooklyn vs. Alabama. Let’s give the fans what they want.”
It would be a clash of styles guaranteed to deliver fireworks — Wilder’s one-punch knockout power against Miller’s relentless pressure and pure volume. With Wilder coming off a victory over Derek Chisora earlier this month and now a free agent, the timing could not be better for negotiations to start.
Miller’s career has been a long road back. He was famously denied a title shot at Anthony Joshua in 2019 after multiple failed drug tests. After working his way back through the journeyman circuit, he is finally one fight away from heavyweight championship gold.
Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller (28-1-2, 22 KOs) is a Brooklyn-based heavyweight known for his enormous frame, high work rate, and aggressive in-your-face style. Lenier Pero (13-1, 8 KOs) is a Cuban Olympian and amateur standout who suffered the first defeat of his professional career in just his 14th professional fight.
