Derek ‘War’ Chisora 33-13 (23) says he loves his fights like he loves his own kids.
The 39-year-old British heavyweight gatekeeper made the comments at the Wednesday press conference to promote his fight against American Gerald ‘El Gallo Negro’ Washington 20-5-1 (13) that will take place on the undercard of Anthony Joshua 25-3 (22) versus Robert Helenius 32-4 (21) at the O2 Arena in London, England on Saturday night.
“It’s going to be a great show,” Chisora said. “They are all big fights for me, all the fights are my babies, from the first fight to when I have my last fight, I love them all. I got two kids and I love them the same way, I don’t love one better than the other and it’s the same with my fights.
“I know what Gerald is going to bring, he’ll put his Usain Bolt shoes on and he’s going to run, but that’s okay, we’re going to chase him, find him and mess him up. I won’t lie, he’s my friend, but when I get in the ring, I’ll eat this guy up.
“All fights you have to win, sometimes it’s not your day; man makes plans and God laughs at him. I can say I’m going to KO him in three rounds and it goes the 12. I wanted to win all the fights I’ve lost.
“The O2 is home to me, I’ve moved around with Johnny [Fisher], he’s a good kid, he fights for the people. Filip, I’m wearing his country’s colours, I saw him in with the Chinese power, it was a tricky fight in Saudi. I trained with Harry [Armstrong] with Don Charles, he’s a good fighter – this is a good card.
“People put my name in the bag for the ‘AJ’ fight but I kept quiet.”
Washington, 41, has had mixed fortunes over the past seven years with just two wins out of seven bouts. One of those victories was an eighth-round knockout of main event fighter Helenius at the Armory in Minneapolis, Minnesota, four years ago. All five of his losses — to Deontay Wilder, Jarrell Miller, Adam Kownacki, Charles Martin and Ali Eren Demirezen — have come via knockout.
“It’s a great match-up for us, we haven’t fought for a long time, a year and a half, so we’re grateful to you and Derek for this opportunity, this shot. We’ve been working and we’re looking forward to it,” Washington said.
“I’ve been up and down, so it’s a matter of being consistent. I started late at 30 and had a lot of great wins and fought for the world title, I’ve had big fights and learning along the way. I’m grateful to be able to fight in London for the first time and get back in the mix baby.”
