By Charles Brun: British heavyweight Derek Chisora will reportedly be facing Gerald Washington in the main portion of the Anthony Joshua vs. Dillian Whyte 2 card on August 12th at the O2 Arena in London.
Adding Chisora-Washington to the card appears to be a calculated move to lure older British fans to purchase the card for £26.95 on DAZN. Rico Boxing reports the news of the 39-year-old Chisora fighting the 6’7″ former world title challenger Washington on the August 12th card.
Washington has been inactive since January 2022; his record is 2-5 in the last five years. His lack of success makes him the perfect opponent for Chisora, whose own career is a dumpster fire, with him having lost four out of his last five fights since 2020.
The only win Chisora has registered in the last years was his controversial 12 round split decision over 41-year-old Kubrat Pulev last year.
Many boxing fans have Pulev winning that fight, as did this writer. It was an easy fight to score, but Chisora, the home fighter, was given the decision. The bout took place in London.
Chisora (33-13, 23 KOs) is a guy that has been around forever, and throwing him on the card against the 41-year-old Washington (20-5-1, 13 KOs) could entice the fence sitters to order the Joshua-Whyte II event.
Washington hasn’t won a fight since 2019 and has lost five out of his last seven fights since 2017. His losses have come against these heavyweights: Deontay Wilder, Jarrell Miller, Charles Martin, Adam Kownacki, and Ali Eren Demirezen.
Obviously, this isn’t the big fight that Hearn needs to interest fans that choose to save their £26.95. A better contest to spruce up the AJ vs. Dillian card would be one of these match-ups:
- Shakur Stevenson vs. Andy Cruz
- Leith Wood vs. Robeisy Ramirez
- Regis Prograis vs. Subriel Matias
Naturally, Cruz, Wood & Prograis would be massive underdogs in those fights, but seeing them face adversity for a change would be fun.
“We are waiting for the board approval for the Derek Chisoa fight. We wanted to announce it a few days ago, but we were calling the board, waiting for approval, and will likely announce it anyway, subject to board approval today or tomorrow,” said Eddie Hearn to iFL TV.
“Yes, the plan is to have Derek Chisora fight on the main card. No, it’s a much better fighter than Mariusz Wach and quite a tough fight,” said Hearn, sounding mysterious. “I’ll wait for it to be announced.”
Other fights on Joshua-Whyte 2 card
- Filip Hrgovic vs. Demsey McKean
- Johnny Fisher vs. Harry Armstrong
- George Liddard vs. Radek Rousal
- Maisey Rose Courtney vs. Gemma Ruegg
- Campbell Hatton vs. Tom Ansell
📣 Derick Chisora (33-13) will fight Gerald Washington (20-5-1) on the #JoshuaWhyte2 undercard
WAR vs El Gallo Negro pic.twitter.com/eZVPQs68rl
— RICO_Boxing (@RICO_Boxing1) August 2, 2023
