Dereck Chisora will hope size matters on Saturday night after coming in almost three stones heavier than Oleksandr Usyk when weights were announced for their huge pay-per-view showdown on Saturday night.
Chisora and Usyk will lock horns at London’s SSE Arena, Wembley in front of a global TV audience. The bout will air live on Sky Sports Box Office in the UK with a price of £19.95. DAZN meanwhile will show the bout in the United States and eight other key markets.
The weigh-in was held in London on Friday afternoon, and as expected there is a significant size difference between the two men.
Chisora (32-9) tipped the scales at 255½ lbs (18st 3½lbs). That was just over four pounds lighter than his last outing against David Price in October 2019. ‘Del Boy’ also caused a stir by walking onto the scales covered in Halloween-inspired make-up.
"I'd rather him knock me out or I've done nothing!" ????
It's almost time for @DerekWarChisora to bring war to @Usykaa ????????????
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) October 30, 2020
Former cruiserweight king Usyk (17-0) meanwhile, came in at 217¼ lbs (15st 7¼lbs). That was just a couple of pounds heavier than for his heavyweight bow against Chazz Witherspoon last October.
World title hopes on the line
Usyk goes into the big bout as the mandatory contender for the WBO world heavyweight title. And a victory over Chisora will push his claims for an immediate shot at the title currently held by Anthony Joshua. It would also complicate Joshua’s hopes for a unification match with Tyson Fury next year.
Saturday’s bout of course takes behind closed doors. That won’t be an issue for Usyk in particular, given his long amateur career often fighting in near-empty halls.
Usyk will start a heavy favourite for the big Matchroom-promoted showdown, as short as 1/8 with some of the UK layers. Chisora meanwhile is around a 9/2 chance. The Usyk vs Chisora main event is expected to start between 2200 and 2300 UK.
The undercard contains the WBO middleweight title showdown between Savannah Marshall and Hannah Rankin. It also boasts the return of heavyweight fan favourite David Allen against unbeaten American Christopher Lovejoy.
