FAMILIAR FOES
Whyte and Chisora go again in a rematch of their heated 2016 thriller, writes Paul Wheeler
IT was two years ago this month that London heavyweight rivals
Dillian Whyte and Dereck Chisora
combined to produce Boxing News’ 2016 British Fight of the Year. After an ugly build-up which included crass insults and an infamous flying table, what followed in the ring was 12 rounds of barnstorming back-andforth action.
A pumped-up Chisora pounced on Whyte from the get-go, forcing him to the ropes and bombarding him with wide hooks and looping overhand blows. Whyte attempted to dissuade his shorter foe with long jabs, but Chisora refused to yield and continued to land clean, crunching strikes.
After setting a torrid pace early on, Chisora’s tempo began to drop somewhat in the second half of the contest. As the former WBC title challenger started to retreat to the strands more frequently, Whyte’s confidence grew. The Brixton “Body Snatcher” blasted his opponent with powerful shots from both fists. He ramped up the pressure late on, with Chisora beckoning him in for more – a glutton for punishment.
With a dozen rounds completed, the judges’ scorecards were called upon. It was mightily close, but the split verdict went Whyte’s way thanks to tallies of 115-113 and 115-114, overriding one of 114-115. This Saturday (December 22), at the O2 Arena in Greenwich, the old adversaries collide again, with the 12-rounder headlining a Matchroom Boxing show on Sky Sports Box Office (UK) and DAZN (US). A win for Whyte would see him cap off what has so far been the best year of his career. In March, the 30-year-old put in an eye-catching performance against the previously unbeaten Lucas Browne, whom he KO’D in stunning fashion in the sixth session. Four months later, he unanimously outpointed EX-WBO titlist Joseph Parker, becoming the first person to knock him down along the way –
twice. Whyte did have to rise from the deck himself in the final frame, however.
The only loss on Whyte’s 24-1 (17) résumé came three years ago against Anthony Joshua – now the unified world champion. After wobbling Joshua in round two, Dillian ended up being stopped in the seventh.
Chisora’s ledger includes significantly more blemishes than Whyte’s, with eight defeats in total for the stocky Finchley man (against 29 wins – 21 early). It should be noted, though, that these setbacks have all come against noteworthy names in the division, such as Tyson Fury (twice), Vitali Klitschko, David Haye (who is now guiding Chisora’s career – see Talking Point) and Kubrat Pulev.
Five months ago, Chisora scored one of his finest victories when he impressively halted Carlos Takam in the eighth round of a cracking clash, despite being considered the underdog beforehand. If the seasoned 34-year-old manages to pull off another upset this weekend, it could well lead to a shot at the aforementioned Joshua in April – likewise for Whyte if he wins.
Both men are in better form going into the rematch than they were heading into the first fight, yet it is Whyte who has improved more substantially as a fighter in the subsequent two-year period. Therefore, it is he who is the pick to triumph in the return, once more on points, but this time more convincingly. Also on the bill, Nicaragua’s Cristofer
Rosales, 28-3 (19), puts his WBC flyweight title on the line for the second time. The Managuan defends his crown against Sutton’s Charlie Edwards, 13-1 (6), who unsuccessfully challenged for the IBF strap in September 2016.
Rosales’ two outings this year have seen him wreck a pair of undefeated records, both on away turf and both inside the distance. The in-form champ can make it a hat-trick of inside-schedule victories on foreign soil in 2018 by quashing Edwards’ brave effort.
Another title fight sees Ryan Walsh, 22-2-2 (11), make the fifth defence of his British featherweight belt. Opposing the tenacious Cromer resident is Watford’s former Commonwealth king Reece
Bellotti, 13-1 (11). The well-schooled challenger lost his status as Commonwealth ruler in June when he was stopped in round five by the unsung Ryan Doyle. Walsh is coming off a February draw with the unbeaten Isaac Lowe, but he can get back to winning ways by taking a decision over Bellotti.
In a 10-round matchup, rising Croydon light-heavyweight Joshua Buatsi, 8-0 (6), meets Redfern, Australia’s gritty Renold
Quinlan, 12-3 (8), who has lost two of his last three and only recently moved up to 175lbs. The heavy-handed Buatsi can enhance his spotless CV by adding another success inside time.
THE VERDICT Let’s hope the sequel is as entertaining as the initial encounter.