Derek Chisora sounds like this fight against Joe Joyce may be the last of his 17-year professional career, and it’s happening this Saturday night at the O2 Arena in London.
The 40-year-old Chisora (34-13, 23 KOs) says this is their last at the O2 Arena and that he doesn’t care if he wins. With a fortune estimated at £12m [$15 million], it’s not surprising that Chisora has such a cavalier attitude about winning the fight because he’s got the kind of money where it doesn’t matter if he comes out on top.
Joyce’s Vulnerability
The 2016 Olympic silver medalist Joyce (16-2, 15 KOs) is the solid favorite to win this 12-round contest, but Chisora feels that he’s still mentally shaken from his back-to-back knockout losses to Zhilei Zhang in 2023 took something out of him.
Joyce looked like he lacked confidence in his last fight against British journeyman Kash Ali last March. Each time Kash nailed the 38-year-old Joyce with a solid shot, Joyce would freeze for a fraction of a second, indicating that his punch resistance may have been impaired by his losses to Zhang.
Chisora’s best chance of winning on Saturday night is focusing on landing headshots immediately and loading up with everything on his punches. Ignore Joye’s body and attack him to the head.
Exploiting the Weakness
“I think Zhang shook him up. Someone is getting knocked out, but it’s not me,” said Derek Chisora to Frank Queensberry Promotion about his fight against Joe Joyce on Saturday night.
One of the two fighter’s careers will likely end this Saturday night. While Joyce might reject the chances of it happening to him, it’s quite possible that he could lose by knockout. They’re both too old to absorb another loss and be used in headliners in the future. Obviously, they can keep fighting after losing, but the chances of them being given headliner gigs are slim.
“I haven’t fought in a year now. It’s one of those fights where you don’t know how it’s going to go, but I know,” said Chisora to Charlie Parson’s YouTube channel. “I’m not worried about winning or losing anymore. I just want to have fun.”
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