Zimbabwe-born boxer Derek Chisora is gearing up for his next fight. His last fight was in August 2023 when he defeated Gerald Washington. However, Chisora is currently preparing for an upcoming fight with Joe Joyce on July 27. The fight is set for London's O2 Arena in Chisora’s adopted hometown.
Joyce and Chisora have been on a collision course for some time, with Joyce first calling for a fight in 2019. Joyce (16-2, 15 KOs) returned to the ring in March following back-to-back knockout defeats to Zhilei Zhang, which dropped him down the heavyweight rankings.
The 2016 Olympic silver medallist secured a 10th-round knockout victory over Kash Ali on his return. However, it was clear that he wasn’t performing at his best during that fight. Before his losses to Zhang, Joyce was in contention for world title fights, having handed Joseph Parker his first knockout defeat and securing wins over Daniel Dubois and Carlos Takam.
As for Chisora, he’s also found himself in a slump. Despite his win over Washington last August, he’s lost four of his last six fights. He lost twice to New Zealand native Joseph Parker during that span. However, he also beat Kubrat Pulev in July 2022 to win the vacant WBA International heavyweight title.
- Rising boxer Danzwa braces for biggest fight in her career
- Zim to host world boxing indabas
- We can’t breathe
- Mnangagwa accuses business of sabotage
Keep Reading
July’s fight in London will come just a couple weeks shy of the one year anniversary of Chisora’s last fight. It will also mark his first fight since turning 40 last December. Needless to say, this puts Chisora, who grew up in the suburbs of Harare, at the crossroads of his career.
With Joyce, who has family roots in Nigeria, being 38, there is already talk that this could be the beginning of the end for the loser of this fight. However, the winner could see more high-profile fights moving forward. That figures to draw plenty of attention to the Joyce-Chisora fight, especially for fans who like to bet on boxing. There is no shortage of platforms for fans who wish to make a wager on this or any other upcoming boxing match.
“This is a proper old school heavyweight fight that seems to have been a long time in the making," promoter Frank Warren says of the Joyce-Chisora card. “Two top London heavies fighting it out for a place back at the top table promises to deliver a cracking scrap.”
