Derek Chisora already planning moves beyond Joe Joyce

Derek Chisora will continue to fight on beyond Saturday’s date with Joe Joyce – win, lose or draw.

The heavyweight, 40, enters his 48th professional contest amid increasing concerns surrounding his health.

Chisora’s has been a punishing career. He has declined significantly since the second of his defeats by Dillian Whyte in 2018, and since then he has fought a further nine times – including once each against Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk, the two finest heavyweights in the world.

In Chisora’s underwhelming victory over Gerald Washington in August 2023, so unconvincing was his balance that among some observers his decline became cause for alarm.

Little under 12 months later he fights Joyce, who may only be two years his junior but who, by comparison, has fought only 18 times. 

The lack of subtlety with which both typically fight means that another bruising contest is almost inevitable. Chisora is the significant underdog; at best he may be competitive; at worst he will suffer a one-sided defeat. 

If the latter should force him to reconsider retirement – and, ultimately, his longer-term future – the former would present him with the opportunity to bow out from the sport he has given so much to with considerable pride.

Instead, he insists he is determined to then fight at least twice more, regardless of what unfolds against Joyce at the O2 Arena in London, because before he retires he wants to record a half-century of professional fights.

“I’m gonna have 50 fights,” he told BoxingScene when asked about why he remains active. “That’s what I wanna have and I’m out. God told me 50 fights.

“I was playing [when I mentioned God] – 50 always comes up to my head. I always wanted to have 50 fights – from the moment I turned pro, and I like that.

“Entertainment, man. Entertainment [is why I fight on]. 

“I love training, bro. I love training. [When our fight was announced Joyce] said he’s going to start his training camp – I train every day.”

Chisora has regularly changed trainer since fighting Whyte for the second time under Don Charles. He has also worked under the similarly respected Dave Coldwell, Buddy McGirt – Coldwell has since encouraged him to consider retirement – and Steven Broughton. 

As with Washington, his trainer on Saturday is expected to be Alexis Demetriades, whose reputation was built in mixed martial arts, but asked who will be in his corner he then responded: “Don’t worry about that.

“You’ll see him in the corner.”