Deontay Wilder won a split decision over Derek Chisora on Saturday night at the O2 Arena in London after 12 rounds that featured knockdowns on both sides, a point deduction and inconsistent officiating. The scores were 115-111 and 115-113 for Wilder, with one judge scoring it 112-115 for Chisora.

It was the 50th professional fight for both men. Chisora had said this would be his last.

The Fight

Wilder came in at 226.4 pounds. Chisora weighed a career-heavy 266.7, a 40-pound advantage that shaped every round. Chisora pressed forward from the opening bell, walking through Wilder’s jab to get inside and make it rough. Wilder worked behind the jab and right hand, landing the cleaner shots from range whenever Chisora gave him space.

The middle rounds were physical and dramatic. Chisora landed a massive overhand right that wobbled Wilder and had the sold-out O2 on its feet. Wilder answered with combinations and an uppercut that opened the seventh round. In the eighth, Wilder dropped Chisora with a left hand that sent him stumbling into the ropes. Chisora looked badly hurt, barely beat the count, and nearly fell out of the ring. Wilder then pushed him through the ropes and lost a point for it. Instead of going for the finish, Wilder let Chisora recover. Chisora came storming back with a right hand, a left hook and a combination before the bell.

The championship rounds were grueling. Chisora was told in his corner that he was two points behind heading into the 11th. He kept pressing but his punches lacked the snap they carried earlier. Wilder landed clean one-twos down the middle while Chisora swung over the top. In the 11th, Wilder went down but no knockdown was called. Chisora landed a hard right to close the round. In the 12th, Wilder walked Chisora onto an uppercut and controlled the early action before Chisora mounted one last push. The final bell was met with a standing ovation.

The officiating was inconsistent throughout. Both knockdowns were debatable. The point deduction came after Wilder pushed Chisora through the ropes following the eighth-round knockdown. Chisora’s corner appeared to be too physically involved between rounds at multiple points.

Wilder improves to 45-4-1. It was only the second decision win of his career. Chisora drops to 36-14 in what he says was his final professional fight.

After the Bell

Speaking to DAZN immediately after the final bell, Wilder said he deliberately held back once he saw the damage accumulating on Chisora. He said he noticed Chisora’s temple swelling and the veins in his head starting to show, and that he told Chisora in the ring that he needed to live for his kids. He said he started having fun in the later rounds because he saw his “brother” getting hurt, and that he chose not to push for a finish.

“Too many lives have been lost in this ring,” Wilder said. “When it’s over, nobody give a damn about us. No matter what they say, nobody gives a f–k about us. So us fighters have to look after each other.”

Chisora spoke to DAZN in the ring with his young daughter beside him. He pointed to the rope incidents as the difference in the fight, saying he was upset that he ended up going through the ropes in the eighth round. The DAZN interviewer told Chisora that many at ringside thought he had done enough to win.

The Undercard

Viddal Riley (14-0, 7 KOs) won the EBU European cruiserweight title with a wide unanimous decision over Poland’s Mateusz Masternak (50-7, 33 KOs). Riley controlled the fight behind his jab and footwork, consistently outlanding the experienced Masternak and keeping exchanges at his preferred range. Masternak had a strong 12th round but Riley had built too large a lead. The scores were 118-110, 118-110, 119-109. The bout also served as an IBF world title eliminator after Jai Opetaia was stripped of the belt in March. Riley is 28 years old.

Denzel Bentley (22-3-1, 18 KOs) stopped Endry Saavedra (17-2-1, 14 KOs) in the seventh round to win the interim WBO middleweight title. It was a competitive fight through six rounds with Saavedra finding success going to the body and making it rough. Bentley was winning rounds on accuracy and skill but Saavedra was making him work for everything. In the seventh, Bentley tagged Saavedra and unloaded with volume. The referee stepped in as Saavedra wobbled and stopped throwing back. The full WBO middleweight title is still held by Janibek Alimkhanuly.

Matty Harris (10-1, 7 KOs) knocked out Franklin Ignatius (9-2-1, 1 KO) in the second round at heavyweight.

Amir Anderson (7-0, 7 KOs) stopped Jordan Dujon (10-7) in the eighth round at middleweight. Anderson remains unbeaten with all seven wins coming by stoppage. Dujon had missed the middleweight limit by 2.9 pounds at the weigh-in and was fined a percentage of his purse.

Ashton Sylve (13-1, 10 KOs) won a unanimous decision over Raul Antonio Galaviz Hernandez (15-5-2, 9 KOs) at super lightweight. The scores were 80-72, 80-72, 78-74. Sylve had come in three pounds over the super lightweight limit and was also fined.

Jermaine Dhliwayo (9-0, 4 KOs) stopped Jake Morgan (7-3, 1 KO) in the seventh round at super featherweight.

In earlier action, Dan Toward stopped Misael Da Veiga in the third round at super welterweight, and Tom Welland won a points decision over Yahir Alexander Solorio Morales at featherweight, 40-36.