:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/52230371/628971902.0.jpeg)
Most times we get some sort of pre-fight hype bit like we had this week with Dereck Chisora tossing a table, the actual fight just comes off like, you know, a pro boxing match. Restrained, cautious, cerebral.
Dillian Whyte vs Dereck Chisora was not one of those fights. It was an actual fight, 12 rounds of grueling heavyweight action that saw both men gassed but refusing to give up, hammering at one another with constant power shots.
In the end, Whyte won a split decision on scores of 115-114, 115-113, and 114-115. His title was not on the line, but he remains the British heavyweight champion, too.
Whyte (20-1, 15 KO) won his fourth fight in 2016, following a loss last December against Anthony Joshua. Chisora (26-7, 18 KO) lost for the second time in three fights, but showed a lot more spirit here than he did against Kubrat Pulev earlier this year.
There’s not much more to say than this is the easy heavyweight Fight of the Year, an overall Fight of the Year contender, and if you missed it, you want to go out of your way to see it.