By Declan Taylor
As Joe Joyce and Dereck Chisora prepare for their heavyweight London derby at the o2 Arena on Saturday, we take a look at how both men can win this clash. With a combined age of 78 and a combined weight of nearly 40st, anything could happen when they collide, so are the bookies wrong in making Joyce the overwhelming favourite?
JOE JOYCE – THE KEY TO VICTORY
Chin
Of course, the key to many of Joe Joyce’s past victories was his chin. Before he faced Zhilei Zhang, it seemed like the Earlsfield man’s chin was basically indestructible. He would get caught by other heavyweights in every fight but would barely flinch. Instead, he would just keep taking them down, attacking the head and body and eventually finding a way to finish. Chisora would certainly bring the heat, but if Joyce could absorb it all, there was no way he was going to lose this fight.
Distance
Joyce has a significant height and reach advantage over Chisora. Now it’s up to him to capitalise on it. Chisora likes to come forward, bobbing and swaying on his way in to avoid attacks, before unleashing powerful mid-to-short hooks. If Joyce can use a long, hard punch to keep Chisora from reaching him, he’ll win the fight. It’s a long, patient, methodical game plan, but he used it to perfection against Daniel Dubois and he can do it again here.
Engine
Along with his granite chin, Joyce’s motor has been one of his trademarks throughout his career. He has the ability to throw big weight deep into a fight when most other heavyweights have worn off. The challenge for him, at 38 and after a poor performance against Kash Ali in his last outing, is to replicate that here. Chisora is also renowned for his ability to keep going despite constant punishment but in Joyce he may have found someone who can simply beat him every round.
Joe Joyce knocks out Joseph Parker during their September 24 fight in Manchester (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
DEREK CHISORA – THE KEY TO VICTORY
Fight inside
If Chisora stays in mid to long range against Joyce, he will just have to take too much damage over the course of 12 rounds to win. He has never been the biggest heavyweight, so he always looks to get in close, sit on his opponent’s chest and stay out of range. He is extremely dangerous when he drives his opponent into the ropes and if he can force Joyce into a corner, he will have a chance to test that chin.
Power
The old adage is that the last thing a fighter needs to lose is his punch – and at 40, Chisora will be hoping to prove that saying right. He’s never been the hardest puncher in the division, but ask heavyweights Artur Szpilka and Carlos Takam if Del Boy can take it down. The jury is still out on Joyce’s chin, given the way Zhang knocked him out in their rematch in September, and Chisora will be hoping it’s shattered for good. It’s almost certain that both men will hook at some point, so it could be a case of whose chin can last longer.
Chaotic
Few fighters of this generation have been more guaranteed to cause more antics in a promotion than Chisora. As he once told his former manager Steve Goodwin, after he threatened to pull out of a fight with Dillian Whyte at the last minute, ‘this is what happens when you deal with crazy people’.
He slapped Vitali Klitschko, spat water in Wladimir’s face, threw a tantrum at a weigh-in in Germany, bit and kissed an opponent and had to pay a large sum for damaging the furniture in the press room.
Joyce, meanwhile, is a pretty docile and friendly character, and if Chisora can get Joyce upset this fight week and let that spill over into Saturday night, he could unnerve his opponent enough to pull off a comeback.
