The Big Brawl

Channel 5 must be delighted with their viewing figures from their first foray into televising boxing last Saturday and hopefully this will lead to further involvement with the sport. For an initial attempt I thought they did a decent job & they were rewarded with the best domestic heavyweight fight in a long time as Tyson Fury came through some difficult moments to claim the British title from a portly Dereck Chisora.

Unlike his opponent Fury had got himself into excellent shape & that was ultimately what decided the fight; Chisora carried the threat & hurt Fury a couple of times, most noticeably in the 2nd round, but it was Fury who consistently kept the flow of punches coming & his workrate made him a clear victor. It was an impressive display of boxing from the 22 year old, who put his combinations together well & reduced the patently unfit Chisora to wild, hopeful swings.

The Manchester fighter also came across as genuinely likeable in the post fight interviews & in his respectful behaviour towards his opponent, in stark contrast to the unpleasant pre fight words. With the likelihood of continuing exposure on terrestrial tv he would be well advised to relax & just be himself, leaving aside the posturing & trash talking; it's not his style & it doesn't work.

As for the beaten fighter, if you're going to come in at the heaviest weight of your career (almost half a stone heavier than an opponent who stood 8 inches taller) for such an important fight in front of a large new audience then you deserve to leave without your titles. Chisora may have put effort in during the fight & he deserves credit for lasting the distance, but the fight was lost by the time they stepped on the scales. If you don't train as a champion & attempt to take short cuts then you'll get found out. Wave goodbye to that money making Klitschko fight.....