Dereck Chisora Flips out at Dillian Whyte, but Pre-Fight Drama Changes Nothing

For just over 16 minutes, Wednesday's press conference to promote the domestic heavyweight fight between Dereck Chisora and Dillian Whyte was everything we expected.

The pair—who face each other in a British title bout in Manchester, England, on Saturday—seem incapable of getting along during the buildup to a pivotal meeting in the respective careers of both men.

Having come to blows during the filming of the Sky Sports' Gloves Are Off show already, tensions were high when they met again in a conference suite in a plush hotel in the city that will stage their 12-round contest.

The main protagonists were perched at opposite ends of the top table, perhaps in hope (certainly not in expectation) that while the media event would undoubtedly get heated, things wouldn't boil over.

So much for that theory.

The verbal sparring was lively, complete with colourful language. It was all about trying to score points in the phoney war.

Branded nothing more than a brawler by Whyte's trainer, Mark Tibbs, Chisora responded by insisting he would drag his less experienced opponent into the "deep end." It was, in the early stages, petty stuff.

Then the mood changed.

Reacting to a verbal threat from Whyte—"everywhere I see you for the rest of my life I’m going to attack you. Even after the fight"—Chisora's patience snapped. (WARNING: Tweet below NSFW.)

Add "throwing a table" to the catalogue of incidents involving the unpredictable Chisora.

Here is a fighter who once kissed opponent Carl Baker during a head-to-head photo opportunity, who slapped Vitali Klitschko in similar circumstances and then had his licence with the British Boxing Board of Control suspended after duelling at the post-fight press conference with David Haye.

And yet, it was hard not to feel some sympathy for Del Boy, who—once the dust had settled and Whyte had left the building—spoke to members of the media.

"Everything was great until he started threatening my life. Threaten my life in the ring, OK. But don’t threaten my life when we come out of the ring," he said.

"That’s not cool. That’s not boxing. He wants to take it to the hooligan style.

"I thought about it when I was sitting down and thought, what happens when I go out with my daughter one day just driving to Winter Wonderland and he’s got his friends there. What’s going to happen?

"He crossed the line and I got upset. That wasn’t my intention. Talk about anything else, my career, anything else, I don’t mind."

Jordan Mansfield/Getty Images

Per Gareth A Davies of the Telegraph, Whyte later claimed his opponent had overreacted: "I never threatened his life, I just said I’ll see him after the fight, I’ll see him in his changing room when I go to say thanks for the fight. Dereck is crazy, why would I threaten his life? I am a professional sportsman; I don’t need to threaten his life."

Debate the interpretation of Whyte's words all you like, what unfolded will have ramifications in the short- and long-term future.

Promoter Eddie Hearn confirmed the pair would weigh in separately ahead of the bout to make sure the next confrontation between the fighters comes in the ring, rather than anywhere out of it.

Robert Smith, head of the British board, was "disgusted" by what unfolded, according to Sheldan Keay of the Manchester Evening News.

There is a threat of the fight being cancelled, with the governing body holding a meeting on Thursday. Considering what has gone on in the past at press conferences, such a drastic measure seems unlikely.

In sending a table on a brief flight (and it must be hoped his punches don't fall as short of the target as the piece of furniture), Chisora raised interest in a pay-per-view card headed by Anthony Joshua's IBF heavyweight title defence against Eric Molina.

If some were reticent to fork out for what, on paper at least, appears set to be another comfortable win for the undefeated Joshua, they may just be persuaded to part with their hard-earned money at the prospect of watching Whyte-Chisora settle their dispute.

But has anything really changed from the moment the fight was announced? No, not really.

Boxing News' George Gigney made it clear via Twitter what he expects from the chief support act for the main event:

Within minutes of the mayhem unfolding, Chisora insisted the incident would not change his plan for fight night: "He doesn’t want to go where I’m going to take him."

He knows what happened on Wednesday won't make one iota of a difference once the first bell rings. Both men will be too focused on following instructions from their corners to think about that table.

Chisora is fighting to remain relevant. His most notable performances have all come in defeats, including going the distance with both Tyson Fury (in the first of their two meetings) and Vitali Klitschko.

After 32 pro fights, and without a meaningful win since outpointing Kevin Johnson in February 2014, there's little to make you think the 32-year-old is about to turn into a late bloomer and go on to win a world title.

Whyte shares a similarity in that he, too, put up his best display to date in a losing cause.

He still remains the one opponent willing to try to fight fire with fire against Joshua, even if he ended up getting burned.

The reigning British champion is, per OddsShark, a 1-2 favourite to triumph against a former holder of the belt. Those stingy odds are based on potential, not previous achievements. He is still something of an unknown quantity, whereas it feels like Chisora has shown us his full repertoire already.

There is also no correlation to suggest pre-fight rumbles make a difference to the fight itself.

Mike Tyson took a bite out of Lennox Lewis' leg in front of the media before their 2002 meeting. After pocketing $335,000 as compensation from his rival, Lewis also made him pay in the ring.

A magnanimous Tyson even praised his conqueror afterwards, per BBC Sport: "I have love and respect for Lennox." He sure had a funny way of showing it.

Herbie Hide and Michael Bentt came to blows before meeting for the WBO heavyweight title in 1994. The scrap outside the Sheraton Park Hotel in London made headlines, as they rolled around on the wet concrete. So did their actual fight, albeit mainly due to the latter suffering brain damage that ended his career.

However, after an immediate inquiry, Hide-Bentt still went ahead despite the on-street fracas.

Chisora landing the first blow on Klitschko didn't aid his cause in the actual fight. Outboxed by the Ukrainian, he lost by a landslide on the scorecards.

The one benefit of facing up to Haye, who knocked out his fellow Brit in Round 5 after the pair were separated at their pre-fight presser by a metal fence, was it created interest in the fight being made. They needed the help of the Luxembourg Boxing Federation, but promoters will supply if there is the demand. 

Some sort of barrier may have prevented any trouble occurring between Chisora and Whyte.

There will be talk of boxing being dragged down by what unfolded. Yet if you believe any publicity is good publicity, the incident won't have done too much harm.

Thankfully, no one was physically hurt, while the added media attention might prick the interest of some.

Boxing fans will, by and large, buy pay-per-view cards based on the talent on display, not any trouble that occurred beforehand. Some more reluctant purchasers, however, could now be persuaded to cough up.

That wasn't Chisora's plan. In the heat of the moment, he reacted to Whyte's incendiary words in a way that could prove costly in the long term. Considering his track record, the BBBofC will be under pressure to act.

Yet don't let that airborne table trick you into believing anything has changed in the immediate future (provided the bout is allowed to go ahead).

This battle of Britain is all about shaping two fighters' futures, not settling any personal scores. And don't be too surprised if they bury the hatchet once all is said and done.

Rob Lancaster is a featured columnist for Bleacher Report. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise stated.