The vacant European Heavyweight Title will be on the line Saturday, November 3rd as Robert “The Nordic Nightmare” Helenius and Derek “Del Boy” Chisora will square off at the Hartwell Arena in Helsinki, Finland. The European sluggers are two of the best that the heavyweights have to offer these days and a win may very well mean a shot at one of the Klitscho brothers who both sit atop the Heavyweight division.
Robert Helenius (16-0, 11 KOs)
- 6’6’’ tall, 79’’ reach, 27 years old
- Finnish
- WBO and WBA Intercontinental Heavyweight Champion
The rising Heavyweight contender has looked impressive in his most recent outings. In August, he turned out a remarkable victory over contender Sergei Liakhovich (25-4) via a 9th round TKO stoppage. Liakhovich had turned down an opportunity with one of the Klitschko’s to take on Helenius and legitimize his standing in the division with a win, but Helenius had different thoughts. Prior to that fight, Helenius KO’d Samuel Peter (34-5), a long time top tier heavyweight.
Though he has only had 16 professional fights, the 27 year old is passing every test given to him, each time showcasing his power and ability to put punches together. With a thin pool of great talent in the Heavyweight division, Helenius is fighting the best that the division has to offer, and a decisive victory over Chisora will solidify him as a top contender in the division.
Derek Chisora (15-1, 10 KOs)
- 6’1’’ tall, 74’’ reach, 27 years old
- British
- Former British and Commonwealth Heavyweight Champion
Chisora has boasted a record very similar to that of Helenius. He has worked his way up the ranks, fighting what little competition the division has to offer. Last year, a fight with Wladimir Klitscho was scheduled until a bigger draw in David Haye became available for Klitscho. He has looked good in most of his bouts, putting away the likes of Danny Williams (44-10-0-1) and Sam Sexton (14-2) both by knockout.
Last July, he put forth an unimpressive performance against Tyson Fury (17-0) in a fight in which he started out well, but was not strong enough to put Fury away. Chisora’s camp insists that he was out of shape for the fight and that he won’t make the same mistake twice. In Helenius, he will have a tough test ahead of him and will need to be at his very best in order to get the job done.
Helenius vs. Chisora Preview & Analysis
Helenius has very good power and welcomes exchanges from willing opponents. His style is such that he is not hard to find and he often takes as much as he gives. So far, he has been able to take the best shots that his opponents have had to offer and has proven that his power is superior. If he plans to continue in this way, he will need to tighten up his defense and work behind his jab, as he has a considerable reach and height advantage over Chisora.
Chisora has some pretty good power if he is able to get inside and let his hands go. We saw this against Danny Williams as he was able to finish him via TKO in the second round. He will need to be prepared to go into deep waters against a very tough and game Helenius, which means his conditioning cannot be in question. His strength lies in his ability to get inside of his opponents and provide pressure. He will need to do this the entire fight in order to break down Helenius. If a future fight with a Klitscho is what he really wants, there is no better test for him right now than the tall, long, and heavy handed Helenius.
Helenius vs. Chisora Prediction
“The Nordic Nightmare” looks to be the one of the best prospects in the division. So far, his only weakness is that he may be too available for aggressive punchers. His size and reach give him a considerable advantage over Chisora and it will be interesting to see whether or not he is willing to use this to his benefit. He throws good combinations and seems to have power in both hands. His ability to land well placed shots has been the key to victory in most of his fights. Against Chisora, he will need to be very careful and perhaps take “Del Boy” into deep waters and break him down from there.
Chisora seems to be hungry. He is confident in his ability and will likely go right after Helenius early. Hopefully for his sake, he is not overly confident, as carelessness will surely get him knocked out against a sharp power puncher like Helenius. He will need to get inside of Helenius but not throw caution to the wind with wild punches. He will have to take calculated and measured steps to wear Helenius down by smothering him and taking away the reach advantage.
With that said, I haven’t seen enough from Chisora thus far to believe that he has what it will take to put away a very strong and very skilled power puncher like Helenius.
Prediction Helenius via KO in the 10th
