Dereck Chisora responds to doubts about his competitive level
Audley Harrison hasn’t helped Derek Chisora’s cause.
In light of the former gold medalists’ disastrous performance last weekend against WBA titlist David Haye, many are beginning to doubt if inexperienced Chisora should be in a December 11 bout with heavyweight king Wladimir Klitschko.
Former boxing promoter Jarvis Astaire, after watching Harrison, announced that the British Board of Boxing Control should "...seriously re-consider authorising Chisora's trip to Germany," for fear that boxing could lose more face with
a pitiful performance from Chisora.
For his part, Chisora isn’t letting the doubts of others interfere with his focus. In response to Astaire’s comments he slammed, "This is a stupid argument. It's not a question of whether I have had enough fights or if I'm tall enough to fight Klitschko,
the point is that when I get through the ropes I will get in there and have a fight and throw things that boxers are supposed to throw—punches—something that Harrison didn’t do."
Chisora continued to ESPN, "Whether I get in there and get smashed up by Klitschko doing it or I get in there and smash him up, I'm fighting for the world heavyweight titles and I'm going to throw punches and fight my heart out. Harrison got through
the ropes and threw one useless jab at Haye in three rounds that wouldn't have kept a mosquito at bay."
Aside from Harrison’s weekend performance, many believe the sad state of the heavyweight division has obliged top-notch fighters like Klitschko to take on totally outclassed competition.
Both of the Klitschko brothers’ last fights, against Samuel Peter and Shannon Briggs respectively, could be accused of being one-sided to the point of being noncompetitive.
"I'm ranked above Harrison in the British and world rankings and had more of a case to fight Haye than he did," Chisora added, getting at some of political underpinnings of the sport.
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