Tyson Fury vs. Dereck Chisora: Preview and Prediction for Heavyweight Bout
It will be a battle for British bragging rights in London this Saturday night, as undefeated heavyweight contender Tyson Fury faces former title challenger Dereck Chisora. And the winner of this fight should move close to the front of the line for a title fight, so more than national pride is at stake.
Fury and Chisora are both known to have questionable manners. But they are even more well-known for enjoying a good scrap.
They had an entertaining fight in 2011, which Fury won by unanimous decision. Both men have improved since, and there's more on the line this time around.
Tale of the Tape
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| Per Boxrec | Tyson Fury | Dereck Chisora |
| Record: | 22-0, 16 KOs | 20-4, 13 KOs |
| Height: | 6'9" | 6'1.5" |
| Reach: | 85" | 74" |
| Weight: | Usually 245-255 lbs | Usually 235-240 lbs |
| Age: | 26 | 30 |
| Stance: | Orthodox | Orthodox |
| Hometown: | Manchester, England | London, England |
| Rounds: | 116 | 145 |
Tyson Fury has a height and reach advantage on nearly every heavyweight on the planet. Dereck Chisora has a great style for taking that sort of edge away.
Fury is the undefeated fighter, but Chisora has faced the better competition. And in the case of his loss to Robert Helenius, he was robbed.
Chisora was born in Zimbabwe but usually sports the Union Jack when entering the ring.
Main Storylines
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With David Haye inactive and Anthony Joshua still in development, Tyson Fury and Dereck Chisora are clearly the top two heavyweights in the United Kingdom. The Ring ranks Fury No. 4 in the world. Chisora could arguably be in viewed as a top-10 fighter.
The two fought in 2011. Although Fury won by comfortable margins on the cards, Chisora had him in serious trouble in Round 10.
In the three years since, Fury has stayed unbeaten, but the best win he has added to his resume was a stoppage of cruiserweight Steve Cunningham.
Chisora reacted to the loss to Fury as if it was a wake-up call.
Since that fight, his conditioning has been much improved. He's usually come in near, or even slightly below, 240 pounds. He is a much more serious and focused fighter now.
Both men are better now than they were then, which makes this a very intriguing fight. It's a good measuring stick for both men.
And the winner should be in line for a title fight, either against the winner of Deontay Wilder vs. Bermane Stiverne or against Wladimir Klitschko.
Strengths
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Tyson Fury is a belligerent giant with boxing skills. He enjoys fighting and knows how to impose himself physically on a smaller opponent. He has outstanding reach and can use it to his advantage.
Dereck Chisora is an athletic and aggressive pressure fighter. He is very good at lowering his level and coming in under a longer fighter, forcing him backward. Like Fury, he is in his element trading punches.
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Weaknesses
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Tyson Fury does not always do a good job of fighting tall. That's a particular problem for a 7-footer. At times he leans dangerously down into range for his opponent's power shots.
He gets overconfident at times and lets his hands fire freely from his sides. He was lucky not to be knocked out by Steve Cunningham.
Dereck Chisora lives and dies by his own aggression. On offense, his focus on mad flurries compromises his accuracy, which has a lot to do with his low knockout percentage.
Defensively, he is easy to time and leaves a ton of space to get hit. His movement is entirely predictable.
Tyson Fury Will Win If...
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The most important thing for Tyson Fury to focus on in this bout is making sure he fights tall. If he gives up his height by leaning forward and moving inside of his own punching range, the physically rugged Dereck Chisora will muscle him around and dictate the pace of the fight.
Fury has to work an aggressive jab, keeping Chisora at the end of his punches and then looking to catch Del Boy with a hard, straight right when Chisora tries to muscle forward.
Fury needs to use his boxing skill and keep his hands up in a guard. He sometimes has a habit of getting cocky and dropping his hands around his waist. He needs to keep his hands high to pick off Chisora's shots.
Fury should fight at long and medium range. Preferably, he should keep Chisora at the very end of his punches, but as Del Boy forces his way inside, Fury should unload hooks and uppercuts.
But when Chisora moves in tight, Fury needs to clinch. He should borrow a page from Wladimir Klitschko and lean heavily on Chisora in the clinch, making the much shorter man carry his weight.
Dereck Chisora Will Win If...
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Dereck Chisora is a better-conditioned, more focused fighter than he was when he lost to Tyson Fury in 2011. But he still fights with the same style. So he'll need to do essentially the same things he did in the first fight but do them better.
The challenge for Chisora is going to be to move inside of Fury's full extension without getting close enough to let the bigger man easily clinch. When Fury does grab the clinch, Chisora should make sure to keep an arm free, so he can bang away at Fury's torso.
Chisora can win this fight by successfully mauling Fury and pushing him around the ring. But when he's in the middle of an offensive rally, he needs to stay smart. He had Fury in a lot of trouble in Round 10 of their first fight, but he attacked so wildly that Fury was able to find space to land a big right hand that slowed Chisora down just enough to help the big man make it to the end of the round.
Chisora can win this fight, and if he does, it will be by imposing his will physically. But he has to temper the beast with some patience.
Prediction
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The last time these guys fought, it was a nice scrap. I am optimistic that this time around will be even better.
I'm tempted to pick Chisora. I'm impressed by the fact that he has consistently been in the neighborhood of 240 pounds in the last couple of years.
He's always been a rugged, aggressive fighter. With improved conditioning, he's more dangerous.
But Fury was only 23 the last time they fought. Three years for a fighter that age can be critical developmental years. He has probably been able to keep pace with Chisora's improvements.
Fury will be able to keep the fight at his range and withstand Chisora's pressure well enough to grind out the decision. It will be close, but I see Fury winning by seven rounds to five.
That should set him up for a title shot. That is where his undefeated streak will come to an end.
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