Eddie Hearn: Chisora is the Perfect Heavyweight Test for Usyk
When it comes to the upcoming heavyweight clash pitting Dereck “War” Chisora (32-9, 23 KO’s) versus former undisputed cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk (17-0, 13 KO’s), all parties are in agreement that Usyk is the more skilled fighter. The two fighters and their respective teams are all on this common page. However, whether or not Usyk is a true heavyweight is still very much up in the air.
In his only outing in the division, against Chazz Witherspoon, the former undisputed cruiserweight champion looked far from a potential dominating force at heavyweight. At the time that Usyk fought him, Witherspoon was rather inactive and hadn’t tangled with a meaningful heavyweight since his bout with Chris Arreola nearly ten years ago.
Even still, Witherspoon held his own and did not allow Usyk to have the masterful premiere showing at heavyweight that he was looking for. In fact, given how well the rusty big man did against Usyk, many started doubting what type of success the Ukrainian could enjoy north of 200 pounds.
NOW OR NEVER
This is why Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn believes the bout with Chisora is the perfect barometer for what Usyk can do in the division.
“This is such a dangerous fight for Oleksandr Usyk, he’s sitting there as mandatory for Anthony Joshua. And that’s why you have to take your hat off to Oleksandr Usyk. I mean let’s just look at it. He beat Gassiev to become undisputed in Russia, in Gassiev’s backyard. He went to America to fight Michael Hunter, beat him.”
“He went to Manchester to fight Tony Bellew, now he is coming to London to fight Dereck Chisora. He went to Latvia to fight Briedis, he went to Germany to fight Marco Huck, he’s an unbelievable resume and he don’t give a fuck mate!”
“…this is the perfect test. I don’t think Chisora looks at it like a test for Usyk but it is. If you come through Chisora, especially if you were to stop Chisora or beat him convincingly, you’re a million percent ready. And that’s one of the last problems with the last fight against Chaz Witherspoon…but Witherspoon probably didn’t give him that test where you could genuinely turn around and say he’s ready to fight for the world heavyweight title…this is the fight that will tell us everything we need to know about Oleksandr Usyk.”
RUMBLE-MINDED MENTALITY
Having outwardly announced that they feel they can’t outbox Usyk, War and all of Team Chisora have openly stated they will try to roughhouse the Ukrainian to secure victory. Hearn is also perfectly lined up with this game plan.
“If Usyk had big power, I would say this would be a nightmare for Dereck Chisora. But if Chisora can hang with him for three or four rounds, close the distance, slobber on him, throw him about, land big shots on him, I think he has every chance in this fight…”
Only time will tell how this plays out in the ring, but at the moment this looks like it has barnburner written all over it! May 23 simply can’t arrive quick enough, not only for the fight itself, but also for the implications for the winner.
“In terms of this, we’ve written to the WBO to say ‘do you confirm that if Chisora wins, does he become the mandatory?’ We’d be happy with that. And I think that whatever happens, he’ll become WBO #1. It’s just whether they give him the mandatory spot and that’s the big risk for Oleksandr.”
“He’s sitting there with the keys to the biggest fight in the division, or one of the biggest fights in the division but he wants to risk it all against Dereck Chisora at the O2 in London on May 23. So fascinating times and I believe the winner of this fight is going to go on to challenger for a world title.”
By: Bakari Simpson
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