British heavyweight veteran Derek Chisora has had a resurgence as of late, but that has not stood in the way of his plans to retire in two fights’ time. After searching for a suitable dance-partner for his penultimate bout, ‘Del Boy’ appears to have chosen loudmouthed American Jarrell Miller, with their encounter reportedly a done deal.
Chisora has been ever-present in the heavyweight division’s world rankings for well over a decade, twice challenging for the coveted WBC crown but coming up short on both occasions against Vitali Klitschko and Tyson Fury.
That 2022 defeat to ‘The Gypsy King’ led to calls for Chisora to hang up the gloves, marking a fourth loss in five outings for the Zimbabwean-born contender, but the now 40-year-old chose to ignore those suggestions.
Instead, Chisora ploughed on and got back to winning ways with a unanimous-decision win against Gerald Washington, which earnt him a shot at declining countryman Joe Joyce back in July, in a meeting where many fans feared for Chisora’s wellbeing.
Yet, despite original concerns that the clash was a mismatch, Chisora was able to spring the upset and secure back-to-back wins for the first time since 2019 – encouraging him to continue in the sport and hopefully reach his goal of 50 professional contests.
Meanwhile, Jarrell Miller has returned to the big stage following the completion of his three-and-a-half-year ban that came following a positive drugs test during the build-up to his grudge match affair with Anthony Joshua.
After three wins within twelve months, Miller went to war with Daniel Dubois and gave a good account of himself before being halted with seconds remaining on the clock, in a performance that has aged well.
The 36-year-old then returned to face former unified heavyweight champion Andy Ruiz Jr. in August and was unfortunate to not get the decision on the judges’ scorecards, who ruled the fight as a draw.
With a history of being able to sell fights to the public and having not registered an official win since March 2023, Miller seemed an ideal opponent for Chisora and it has now been reported that their showdown is almost finalised for February 8th, as per esteemed boxing journalist Dan Rafael.
Per sources, heavyweight fight between Derek Chisora and Jarrell Miller is being finalized and would take place Feb. 8 in Manchester, England, and headline a Queensberry card. Hard to see this not being a fun fight. #boxing
— Dan Rafael (@DanRafael1) November 20, 2024
“Per sources, heavyweight fight between Derek Chisora and Jarrell Miller is being finalised and would take place Feb. 8 in Manchester, England, and headline a Queensberry card. Hard to see this not being a fun fight. #boxing”
Chisora-Miller is expected to take place at the newly-opened Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, with the heavyweight’s poised to headline the second boxing event to be staged at the venue, after Jack Catterall and Regis Prograis topped the bill at the first.
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