By: Hans Themistode
Dereck Chisora was incredulous when the results were first announced. Believing he did more than enough to earn a victory against Joseph Parker, Chisora was stunned when it was actually Parker’s hand that was raised after a hard-fought 12 rounds on May 1st.
After admitting that their bout was a close affair, both Parker and Chisora have decided to do it again.
On December 18th, at Manchester Arena, the original scene of the crime, both heavyweight contenders are set to lock horns once more.
Chisora’s belief that he won their first showdown, stems from the fast start he got off to. After flooring his man in the opening round, Chisora continued to up the pace throughout the first half of their contest.
Ultimately though, Parker would find his rhythm and hold his ground. The former WBO heavyweight titlist seemingly had much more in the gas tank during the championship rounds and took advantage of both his better gas tank and a fatigued Chisora to eke out the victory.
For Parker, the win represented his fifth straight since picking up back-to-back losses at the hands of Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte in 2018. Currently, the 29-year-old is ranked number two in the WBO sanctioning body and could be on the verge of landing a title shot.
As for Chisora, he now finds himself in the midst of a two-fight losing streak. Shortly before picking up the loss to Parker, Chisora was handed a close unanimous decision defeat at the hands of Oleksandr Usyk.
In preparation for his immediate rematch with Parker, Chisora has been spotted sparring current unified heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua.
