The Wait is Over: Chisora – Haye Preview

The time for talking is over.

Dereck Chisora against David Haye is finally here. 

Everyone knows how the fight has come about and everyone knows about the controversy with the BBBoC. That’s all out the way now.

The build up has gone smoothly. So has the weigh-in. (Maybe that fence can take some credit for that).

Now it’s time to fight, time to finish this rivalry for good.

And to be honest, I’m struggling to pick a winner right now.

Haye has won world titles, been in there with the better Klitschko, is faster and is definitely the better athlete.

Chisora is  has lost his last 3 but is more durable, has the better chin and is a natural heavyweight.

So how does this fight play out? The fact the fight is only scheduled for 10 rounds might have a huge impact.

Chisora is a slow starter and if Haye comes out the blocks quickly, he could catch Del-Boy and that would be all she wrote. Chisora does have a great chin but he hasn’t fought anyone who has that type of explosive power that Haye possess.

Alternatively, Haye could just use his reach and height advantage to box his way to an unanimous decision.

So I do think Haye has the better options going into this fight. I don’t think Chisora can out-box or blast him out of there.

For Chisora to really stand a chance, he has to be bang on from the jump.

He has to use his head movement as he walks Haye down and once he’s in range, jump on him and unload punches to the body, really pressure Haye. But he has to make sure he has good head movement because if he doesn’t, Haye will catch Chisora as he walks in.

If the fight was 12 rounds, I’d probably back Chisora on points because he gets stronger as a fight wears on but seeing as it’s only the 10 rounds, I think it plays into Haye’s hands.

At this point, I’ve change my mind about 100 times and I’ll probably change it 100 more before the first bell rings.

But I’ll stick my neck out here and go for a David Haye win, via points.

Be sure to check below to see all the build-up the fight:

Episode 1:

Episode 2:

Episode 3:

Weigh-in:

Cleverly set for Krasniqi (who?!?) clash

Nathan Cleverly will defend his WBO light-heavyweight title against Robin Krasniqi after the WBO FINALLY sanctioned the bout.

The fight will take place on April 28 at the famous Royal Albert Hall.

The WBO initially decided against sanctioning the fight, stating that Cleverly must fight his mandatory challenger instead.

But Frank Warren has managed to persuade the WBO to allow this fight to happen, with WBO adding the stipulation that the winner must fight the mandatory challenger within 120 days.

Well it’s not exactly a fight to get excited about is it boxing fans?

Robin Krasniqi is ranked 4th by the WBO. Now some would ask “well what’s the problem then, he’s ranked 4th”. Yes that’s fine but they have Chad Dawson, who I believe would wipe the floor with Cleverly, ranked 7th and the WBC and IBO don’t even have him ranked inside their top 40. Says it all about Cleverly’s level of opposition.

Yet Cleverly, and promoter Frank Warren, will have you believe that Krasniqi will be a “hard test” and that he’ll “bring out the best” in Nathan. I hope boxing fans don’t fall for this.

I can fully understand fighters taking an easy defence here and there but when you’re 25 and only had 25 fights, with none of them being particularly tough (except perhaps Bellew), you don’t deserve to have an “easy” fight/defence.

A Carl Froch would be perfectly within his rights to take an “easy” fight due to the run he’s had, but what’s he doing; fighting Lucian Bute.

Warren seems to be pushing for a Cleverly-Hopkins fight (even if he doesn’t come through his rematch with Dawson) next. It’s a cracking fight for Cleverly to have but one he hasn’t earned and is a fight, I believe, he’ll lose. It’s nothing more than a pay-day for Cleverly.

But my message to Cleverly would be:

Get this fight with Krasniqi over with, fight your mandatory and then fight some real competition.

The likes of Cloud, Pascal, Shumenov and Campillo are the sort of fights Cleverly should be having, especially if he’s as good as he, and Frank Warren, say he is.

The Sweet Science UK prediction:

With all that said, I believe Cleverly will win. Most likely via a points decision as he doesn’t seem to have developed any real power in this division.

He does have a fantastic work-rate and that should see him through against Krasniqi but he’ll need more than that to beat the top names at 175.

 

Brook ready for American debut

Brook set for USA debut

Kell “Special K” Brook will be hoping a dazzling and performance on his American debut will catapult him to the brink of a world title shot.

The Sheffield native faces Luis Galarza in a 10-round contest on the Froch-Ward under card.

The WBO’s number two ranked welterweight knows an eye catching performance will only further enhance his growing reputation as he bids to make a name for himself stateside.

Sweet Science UK prediction

This is nothing more or less than a tune up for “Special K” so he can look good on his American debut.

Brook has done a lot of talking recently, especially regarding a contest with fellow Brit Amir Khan, but now is the time to step up.

His opponent boasts a decent record with 17 wins from 19 fights but 2 losses. But he faces a real step up in class when he faces Brook who will be looking to impress.

I expect Brook to win via KO and look flashy doing so. Once he gets this fight out the way, I’m hoping promoter Eddie Hearn can get him some competitive fights because that’s what Brook needs to test himself so we can find out how good he really is.