By Jim Maltzman: Oleksandr Usyk used a new novel approach in sending a warning message to Dereck Chisora on Friday. While getting hit with the medicine ball to the midsection by his trainer, Usyk (17-0 13 KOs) let Chisora know that he’s coming for him.
“Dereck, I’m coming for you,” Usyk said on Instagram. He said this while getting tagged over and over to the midsection by a medicine ball.
The negotiations for the Usyk vs. Chisora fight are still ongoing, but Eddie Hearn is optimistic that he can get it made for October 31st. Unfortunately, there are still many doubts about whether the fight will take place this year due to the lack of an audience.
Chisora wants to fight in front of a crowd
Usyk has repeatedly been sending messages to Chisora on social media, letting him know he’s coming for him. Chisora said this week, “Usyk thinks I’m going to pull out of the fight.”
Chisora wants the fight, as it gives him a chance to become the WBO mandatory challenger to champion Anthony Joshua. Usyk, 33, will be putting his WBO mandatory position on the line for the fight with Dereck, so it’s an excellent incentive for Delboy to take the fight.
Chisora wants to make sure the fight with former undisputed cruiserweight champion Usyk makes the most money possible. The only way to accomplish that is to delay the contest with Usyk until 2021. One can understand why Chisora would want to make the most money possible for the Usyk match, as he’s 36, and he doesn’t have a lot more time in his career.
Hearn needs to pay Chisora well
For Hearn to make it worthwhile for Chisora to fight Usyk in 2020, he’ll likely need to pay him the kind of money he would see if the match took place in front of fans. Apart from that, it doesn’t make sense for Chisora to fight Usyk this year without a crowd.
Chisora is being brought in to give Usyk a name opponent to a little credibility with the UK boxing fans by showing that he can defeat a quality heavyweight. Usyk needs Chisora’s scalp to help him gain status with the casual boxing fans, which won’t come cheap.
Chisora is going to want to get paid well, and you can’t blame him. He’s not the blue-chip guy in this fight. It’s Usyk, who had a tremendous amateur background in winning an Olympic gold medal in 2012.
As a professional, Usyk became the undisputed cruiserweight champion in 2018 after just five years as a pro. That’s almost unheard of in boxing. Even Vasily Lomachenko never did that.
If Hearn could promise Chisora a title shot against Joshua in 2022, that would be one way for him to entice him to take the fight potentially. Chisora doesn’t come out ahead fighting Usyk without a crowd unless Hearn can come up with some idea to motivate him into signing.
Chisora will be a massive underdog against Usyk, and it’s going to be almost impossible for him to win without a knockout. Dereck doesn’t move well around the ring, and he’ll have a lot of problems trying to get to the fleet of foot Usyk.
That’s why Hearn must encourage Chisora to sign because he’ll be losing money if he faces Usyk without a crowd. Also, his career will be hurt if he gets beaten in a one-sided contest, which is how many boxing fans see that fight playing out.