Dereck Chisora

Dereck Chisora
Chisora (right) with Alex Reid
Statistics
Nickname(s)	Del Boy
Rated at	Heavyweight
Height	6 ft 1 1⁄2 in (187 cm)
Reach	74 in (188 cm)
Nationality	British
Born	(1983-12-29) 29 December 1983 Mbare, Harare, Zimbabwe
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	32
Wins	26
Wins by KO	18
Losses	6

Dereck Chisora (born 29 December 1983) is a British professional boxer.^[1] He held the British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles from 2010 to 2011; the European heavyweight title from 2013 to 2014; and has challenged once for the WBC heavyweight title in 2012.

Early life

Chisora was born in Mbare, a suburb of the Zimbabwean capital Harare.^[2] As a teenager he attended Churchill School. Chisora and his family moved to the United Kingdom in 1999 and lived in Finchley, London.

Boxing career

Early career

Chisora turned professional on 17 February 2007, scoring a second round TKO against István Kecskés.^[1] After winning three more fights (all by decision), he came up against the toughest test of his career against fellow rising British heavyweight prospect, Sam Sexton. Chisora won the fight by stopping Sexton in the final 30 seconds of the final round.^[3] He moved on from the win over Sexton by beating Shawn Mclean, an American, at the Grosvenor House hotel in Mayfair, and then stopped the experienced Lee Swaby in 3 rounds at the York Hall. Chisora finished the year with a December victory over Neil Simpson at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre in London's Docklands leaving him with an 8–0 record at the end of his second year as a professional.

Chisora was suspended for four months for biting Paul Butlin during the fifth round of their 22 May 2009 contest at the York Hall in Bethnal Green. The incident was missed by the referee but TV replays proved conclusive and as a result Chisora missed out on his fight for a British title against Danny Williams. He was fined £2,500.^[4]

Chisora went on to defeat Zurab Noniashvili on 9 October, winning by TKO in three rounds at York Hall.^[5] On 20 January 2010, it was announced that he would get a second chance to face Danny Williams on 13 February 2010 after Sam Sexton was forced to withdraw injured from his match with Williams. Chisora welcomed the chance, saying, "It was my own fault the fight with Williams didn't go ahead, and I've been kicking myself ever since." Williams pulled out of the bout, however, and Chisora instead fought Carl Baker in an eliminator with the winner to face Williams. Chisora defeated Baker in the second round.

On 15 May 2010, Chisora fought Williams for the British heavyweight title which he won after stopping Williams in the second round.^[6] Chisora defeated a challenge from Sam Sexton by knockout in the ninth round on 18 September 2010, adding the Commonwealth heavyweight title to his British title.

2011–12

Chisora was scheduled to face the IBF, IBO, WBO and Ring Magazine heavyweight champion, Wladimir Klitschko on 11 December 2010, but Klitschko pulled out of the fight three days prior with a torn abdominal muscle. The fight was later rescheduled for 30 April 2011, but this was later cancelled so Klitschko could fight David Haye on 2 July.

Chisora vs. Fury I and Helenius

On 23 July 2011, Chisora defended his British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles against the upcoming Tyson Fury, who like Chisora had a record of 14-0 entering the fight. Fury won by unanimous decision with scores of 117-112, 117-112 and 118-111.

On 3 December, Chisora faced undefeated Robert Helenius in Helsinki, Finland for the vacant EBU heavyweight title. Helenius won by split decision after two judges scored the fight 115-113 to Helenius and the third scored it 115-113 to Chisora. The decision was highly debated as most pundits and onlookers thought Chisora had done enough to get the decision. The Ring considered the outcome of the match "a gift", dropping Helenius' ranking from fifth to sixth challenger. Chisora complained afterwards demanding a rematch on a neutral territory.

Chisora vs. Klitschko

Sources in Germany reported that he was likely to fight Ukrainian WBC Heavyweight Champion Vitali Klitschko on 18 February 2012 at Munich's Olympiahalle.^[7][8][9] Later, on 12 December 2011, it was confirmed that Klitshko would be Chisora's next opponent. Chisora slapped Klitschko at the weigh in for the heavyweight title fight and was widely criticised. Chisora is quoted as saying after the slap "I ain't come here to play games I come here to fight."^[10][11]

On 18 February, Chisora and Klitschko fought in Germany for the WBC Heavyweight Championship. After a close first round, Klitschko started to land his right hand in round two and continued to land clean power shots from a distance as the bout progressed. Chisora showed a good chin, and did the majority of his work to the body. The scores were 118–110, 118–110 and 119–111, giving a unanimous decision of victory to Klitschko.^[12] During a post-fight press conference following his loss to Klitschko, Chisora was involved in a confrontation with David Haye.^[13] Haye initially responded to a statement by Klitschko's manager Bernd Boente that no more British boxers would be given the right to challenge the Klitschkos. Chisora challenged Haye to a fight and taunted Haye over the toe injury he had suffered prior to his loss to Wladimir Klitschko, to which Haye responded that Chisora had lost his three previous fights. Chisora eventually left the stage to confront Haye, who met him with a right hook to the jaw, before both security and Chisora's entourage intervened to try and separate the two. The fight continued, and at one point Haye swung a camera tripod in Chisora's direction. The two were eventually pulled apart. During the confrontation, Chisora claimed he was glassed by Haye and was filmed saying he would shoot Haye and telling Haye's trainer, Adam Booth, that he would face Haye in the ring or hunt him down. The next morning, Chisora was arrested by German police but was later released without charge after questioning.^[14]

Chisora vs. Haye

On 14 March 2012, the British Boxing Board of Control withdrew Chisora's boxing licence due to his behaviour prior to and after his bout with Klitschko.^[15] The World Boxing Council has issued an indefinite suspension against Chisora fighting again for a WBC title, while demanding he take anger management medical treatment after which his suspension will be reconsidered.^[16] A year later, on 12 March 2013, the British Boxing Board of Control re-issued Chisora his license to box. However, despite not having a British license at the time Chisora was still able to fight under license from another country, and therefore was able to face David Haye at Upton Park on 14 July 2012, in a fight billed as 'Licensed to Thrill'. Haye outscored Chisora in the first two rounds but Chisora came back at him in the third and was able to hit him with several shots including a left hook that rattled Haye at the end of the round, the bell also appeared to ring early. Haye regained the edge towards the end of the fourth and in the fifth he knocked Chisora down with a left and right hook. Chisora got to his feet only for Haye to connect again with a series of punches that put Chisora down for second time. Although he beat the count again the referee waved it off which meant Haye won the fight by TKO.^[17]

Since the match with Haye, Chisora apparently has been working to change his out of ring image, no longer disrespecting opponents before fights and in press conferences. Chisora said, "If you look at fights from the golden era there wasn’t the same level of disrespect that you get now. There was no swearing on live television and things like that. Actually there were champions who used to shake hands and hang out but, when it came to fight time, you got a fight." Regarding the fight buildup, he also said, "We've decided to promote this fight a different way. We want the public to tune in to see us perform in the ring and not because we've been arguing. That's the route we're taking now, we want to give boxing a better image."^[18]

2013–14

Chisora had a good year in 2013, recovering well from his defeats the previous year. He scored four victories, all of which came by knockout including a sixth round TKO win over undefeated American contender Malik Scott.^[19]

Chisora vs. Fury II

On 15 February 2014, Chisora fought American Kevin Johnson and won by unanimous decision after twelve rounds.^[20] This set up a second fight against fellow Brit Tyson Fury in London. Originally scheduled for 26 July 2014, Chisora broke his hand in training and the fight had to be rescheduled for 29 November. The bout was dubbed 'The Fight for the Right' as it was a final eliminator for the WBO heavyweight title and a shot at champion Wladimir Klitschko. Chisora struggled with the ever improving Fury's height, reach and movement, with Fury winning the rounds comfortably until trainer Don Charles had seen enough and pulled Chisora out at the end of the tenth round.^[21]

2015–16

Chisora vs. Pulev

After a period of eight months without a fight since his defeat to Fury, Chisora won five fights in five months against some lowly ranked European opponents which helped set up a fight for the recently vacated European heavyweight title against highly ranked Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev in Hamburg on 7 May 2016. The bout was also an eliminator for the IBF heavyweight title.^[22] Despite what had seemed a fairly comfortable points win for Pulev the fight ended in a split decision, with two judges scoring it 118-110 and 116-112 in Pulev's favour while the third scored it 115-113 for Chisora. The defeat left Chisora's chances of a world title shot against IBF champion Anthony Joshua in doubt.^[23]

Chisora made a comeback in Sweden on 10 September 2016 against Bosnian boxer Drazan Janjanin. Chisora scored a 2nd round knockout victory following a body shot. Although Janjanin beat the count, the referee waved the fight off.^[24]

Chisora vs. Whyte

Terms were finally agreed for a fight between Chisora and British heavyweight champion and London bitter rival Dillian Whyte to fight in a WBC title eliminator. Chisora and Whyte had been feuding over the year through social media. Whyte will be making his first defence since winning the vacant British title in a fight against Ian Lewison in October 2016. The fight will take place on Sky Box Office in the UK on the undercard off Joshua vs. Molina for the IBF heavyweight title.^[25]

Personal life

In November 2010, Chisora was found guilty of assaulting his then-girlfriend after finding text messages from another man on her phone. He narrowly escaped being sent to jail, and was given a 12-week prison sentence suspended for two years. He was ordered to pay £1,500 in compensation and £500 costs and complete 150 hours community work. The court was told that the fighter also had previous convictions for public order offences, assaulting a police officer and possession of an offensive weapon.^[26]

On September 26, 2016, Chisora was stopped in his Bentley near Hyde Park in London. It was reported that Chisora was driving without a valid driving licence, insurance and MOT certificate. After initially being given six points, which would mean a six month driving ban, Chisora since appealed the ban blaming his insurance broker. A date of October 10 was set for the hearing.^[27]

Professional boxing record

No.	Result	Record	Opponent	Type	Round, time	Date	Location	Notes
33	N/A	N/A	Dillian Whyte	N/A	– (12)	10 Dec 2016	Manchester Arena, Manchester, England	For British heavyweight title
32	Win	26–6	Drazan Janjanin	KO	2 (8), 1:09	10 Sep 2016	Hovet, Stockholm, Sweden
31	Loss	25–6	Kubrat Pulev	SD	12	7 May 2016	Barclaycard Arena, Hamburg, Germany	For vacant European heavyweight title
30	Win	25–5	Andras Csomor	TKO	2 (8), 2:08	9 Jan 2016	Baden-Arena, Offenburg, Germany
29	Win	24–5	Jakov Gospić	TKO	3 (8), 2:23	12 Dec 2015	The O2 Arena, London, England
28	Win	23–5	Peter Erdos	TKO	5 (8), 1:01	5 Dec 2015	Inselparkhalle, Hamburg, Germany
27	Win	22–5	Marcelo Luiz Nascimento	PTS	10	26 Sep 2015	Wembley Arena, London, England
26	Win	21–5	Beka Lobjanidze	KO	1 (10), 0:29	24 Jul 2015	Wembley Arena, London, England
25	Loss	20–5	Tyson Fury	RTD	10 (12), 3:00	29 Nov 2014	ExCeL, London, England	Lost European and WBO International heavyweight titles; For vacant British heavyweight title
24	Win	20–4	Kevin Johnson	UD	12	15 Feb 2014	Copper Box, London, England	Retained WBA International and WBO International heavyweight titles
23	Win	19–4	Ondřej Pála	TKO	3 (12), 0:31	30 Nov 2013	Copper Box, London, England	Retained WBO International heavyweight title; Won vacant WBA International heavyweight title
22	Win	18–4	Edmund Gerber	TKO	5 (12), 2:55	21 Sep 2013	Copper Box, London, England	Won vacant European heavyweight title
21	Win	17–4	Malik Scott	TKO	6 (10), 2:56	20 Jul 2013	Wembley Arena, London, England	Won vacant WBO International heavyweight title
20	Win	16–4	Hector Alfredo Avila	TKO	9 (10), 2:49	20 Apr 2013	Wembley Arena, London, England
19	Loss	15–4	David Haye	TKO	5 (10), 2:59	14 Jul 2012	Boleyn Ground, London, England	For vacant WBA Inter-Continental and WBO International heavyweight titles
18	Loss	15–3	Vitali Klitschko	UD	12	18 Feb 2012	Olympiahalle, Munich, Germany	For WBC heavyweight title
17	Loss	15–2	Robert Helenius	SD	12	3 Dec 2011	Hartwall Arena, Helsinki, Finland	For WBA Inter-Continental, WBO Inter-Continental, and vacant European heavyweight titles
16	Win	15–1	Remigijus Ziausys	PTS	6	11 Nov 2011	North Bridge Leisure Centre, Halifax, England
15	Loss	14–1	Tyson Fury	UD	12	23 Jul 2011	Wembley Arena, London, England	Lost British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles
14	Win	14–0	Sam Sexton	TKO	9 (12), 2:53	18 Sep 2010	LG Arena, Birmingham, England	Retained British heavyweight title; Won Commonwealth heavyweight title
13	Win	13–0	Danny Williams	TKO	2 (12), 1:41	15 May 2010	Boleyn Ground, London, England	Won British heavyweight title
12	Win	12–0	Carl Baker	TKO	2 (10), 2:13	13 Feb 2010	Wembley Arena, London, England
11	Win	11–0	Zurab Noniashvili	TKO	3 (8), 2:20	9 Oct 2009	York Hall, London, England
10	Win	10–0	Paul Butlin	PTS	8	22 May 2009	York Hall, London, England
9	Win	9–0	Daniil Peretyatko	PTS	8	30 Jan 2009	York Hall, London, England
8	Win	8–0	Neil Simpson	RTD	2 (8), 3:00	6 Dec 2008	ExCeL, London, England
7	Win	7–0	Lee Swaby	TKO	3 (8), 2:45	26 Sep 2008	York Hall, London, England
6	Win	6–0	Shawn McLean	TKO	6 (8), 3:00	12 Sep 2008	Grosvenor House, London, England
5	Win	5–0	Sam Sexton	TKO	6 (6), 2:34	14 Jun 2008	York Hall, London, England
4	Win	4–0	Paul Butlin	PTS	4	12 Jan 2008	York Hall, London, England
3	Win	3–0	Darren Morgan	PTS	4	13 Oct 2007	York Hall, London, England
2	Win	2–0	Tony Booth	PTS	4	7 Apr 2007	Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales
1	Win	1–0	István Kecskés	TKO	2 (4), 1:21	17 Feb 2007	Wembley Arena, London, England	Professional debut

Titles in boxing

References

External links

• Official website
• Professional boxing record for Dereck Chisora from BoxRec