Britain’s heavyweight division sees the return of the colorful and controversial Dereck ‘Del Boy’ Chisora who resumes his career after an eight month hiatus this Friday at the SSE Arena, Wembley. The pride of Finchley features in a ten round contest against Georgia’s Beqa Lobjanidze.
‘British boxing needs me back,’ declared ‘Del, who lost his titles to Tyson Fury at the ExCeL Arena in November.
It was the former world title challengers fifth reverse – and second to Fury – in his eight year 25 fight pro career and many expected him to drift quietly off into the sunset.
‘Retire?! How old do you think I am? I’m just 31, just starting out. I never announced my retirement. I’ve a long, long time left,’ he insists.
‘Look, Tyson thumbed me in the first round, then thumbed me in the third round. My eye closed and I couldn’t see. Trust me, in time, Tyson and me are gonna bump it again. ‘Del Boy’s’ a long way from finished.
‘My goals now are exactly the same as they were when I first started out as a pro; to be in great fights against other great fighters. I’m an entertainer, I deliver the fans what they want. I create a jolly!’
Though he has not been seen since the Fury loss, the Zimbabwe born former ABA super-heavyweight champion insists he has been far from idle.
‘I’ve passed most of the last eight months at the gym, training, training, training, man, getting ready to come back’ he says.
‘I’ve got a new set-up, a new trainer in Gary Innes and, for now, I’m training at a gym in St Pancras. I’ve got my mojo back and I’ve been learning lots of great new stuff. I can’t wait to demonstrate my skills to the public.’
New man Innes, a one time amateur boxer and ex kick-boxer who has previously tutored talents such as Dean Francis, Ossie Duran, Leon Williams and Pele Reid, has been busy orchestrating the technical and psychological changes needed to vault Chisora from contender to champion again.
He said: ‘Trust me, he still really wants to fight. Some can fight but don’t want to. Others can’t fight but really want to. Dereck has both the ability and the desire. His mindset is good. He’s really enjoying his boxing at the moment.”
Chisora, ever the gladiator, is chomping to get straight back among the iron in boxing’s blue riband division.
