The Sporting Hack

If we’re being succinct over it, Dereck Chisora’s defence of his British and Commonwealth belts against Tyson Fury was two tubby ‘lard-arses’ slugging for their lives. A matchup between the 6’ 9” Fury and Chisora - seven inches smaller - was so eagerly anticipated among Boxing circles that only channel Five stumped up the cash to broadcast it. Best of British it may be, but unfortunately this fight carried on the disappointing chain of heavyweights nowhere near ready to take on the World. The trio of Michael Sprott, Audley Harrison and Danny Williams have now left the scene to let these two relatively inexperienced fighters have a go. Mancunian giant Fury unanimously, and deservedly, beat the cheeky Cockney named Del Boy who was far from savvy and generally just porky – weighing in 16lbs heavier than the last time he fought. In a contest which was similar to the dynamics of David Haye’s disappointing clash with Wladimir Klitschko, Chisora was not hindered by a broken little...

When Joe Frazier defeated Muhammad Ali forty years ago in Madison Square Garden’s, in their first of three brutal encounters, he probably didn’t have a care in the World. He had just retained his two World title belts and the word beginning with ‘R’ when he would hang up his gloves was most likely the last thing on his mind. Of the two fighters that left the ring in New York, time hasn’t been favourable to either. However, they are both held in the highest of regards by, not just the boxing public, but the sporting one. On the eve of David Haye’s pinnacle fight against Wladimir Klitschko in Germany we are witnessing boxers that are hyped as warriors and potential legends. Neither, in fact, is worthy of catching Frazier’s gum-shield or lacing Ali’s gloves. While Muhammad Ali is seemingly failing to deal with the subsequent severity of his Parkinson’s disease, Frazier is not just short of a ‘bob or two’, but damn near completely broke. The chance for myself to go to ‘an eveni...