David Haye is not worried about Derek Chisora stepping into the ring with Tyson Fury on Saturday and believes his old rival fully deserves the “big, juicy paycheck” coming his way.
Veteran Chisora will fight for the world heavyweight title again and attempt to produce a huge shock in his 46th bout by downing his undefeated fellow Briton at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Chisora will turn 39 later this month and three consecutive defeats sparked calls for ‘Del Boy’ to quit last winter only for the Finchley fighter to beat Kubrat Pulev on points in his most recent outing at the O2 Arena in July.
It put external talk of retirement on hold for the Harare-born boxer but he now faces a big step up in class when a trilogy occurs with Fury, who has knocked out his last three opponents and swept aside Chisora in 2011 and 2014.
Haye managed Chisora for three years before an amicable split last year and has no concerns about the domestic match-up.
“No, I am not worried at all. Derek is a fighter, this is what he does,” Haye told the PA news agency. “He has definitely got fight because he proved it in his last fight and he is ready to go again.
“By all accounts his training has gone great and I cannot wait for that first bell to ring and them both to run across the ring and start trading. That will be so entertaining.
“One thing you can guarantee is that Derek Chisora is going to do that, 100 per cent. Is Tyson Fury? I hope Tyson proves his promise right and gives the fans a real good night of entertainment.”
A decade ago, it was Haye in the ring with Chisora in a bitter battle at Upton Park that saw the former win with a fifth-round knock-out.
Years later and the bad blood between the pair is long behind them with Haye partly responsible for Chisora’s improved professionalism during recent times.
While Dillian Whyte, Oleksandr Usyk and Joseph Parker inflicted defeats on Chisora under Haye’s watch, the former cruiserweight and heavyweight champion is delighted to see his old rival on the cusp of a huge payday with 60,000 spectators expected at Tottenham this weekend.
He said: “Yeah, it is crazy how time does fly, it really does, but it is nice to see Derek get an opportunity like this after so many tough fights.
“Since Dillian Whyte, that epic second fight, he has been really watching how he lives his life and he deserves it. It has been a lot of years of work.
“Now, he is hopefully able to go out there and perform at the highest level and get a big, juicy paycheck.
“If Derek had walked off into the sunset, he wouldn’t be getting this payday. The sunset will look a lot brighter with an extra couple of million in his pocket.”
If Derek had walked off into the sunset, he wouldn't be getting this payday. The sunset will look a lot brighter with an extra couple of million in his pocket— David Haye on Fury vs Chisora III
When Chisora beat Pulev in the summer, it was actually Fury who was inactive after the WBC champion decided to call it quits after beating Whyte himself at Wembley in April.
Months later and the ‘Gypsy King’ had reversed his decision but, after fights with Usyk and Anthony Joshua fell through, it was Chisora who is tasked with stopping Britain’s best boxer.
Haye was not surprised to see Fury, who he was set to face in 2013 only for injury to scupper his plans, pull a U-turn and feels he will only walk away when Usyk and Joshua have been conquered.
“Tyson hasn’t beaten the unified heavyweight champion in Oleksandr Usyk yet and he hasn’t beat the big name of our time who doesn’t have a title but is still the biggest money-making name in the division by a long, long way in Anthony Joshua, that is what he needs to be focusing his energy on,” Haye insisted.
“Hopefully Tyson is someone who is able to retire after beating all the men in his era like Lennox Lewis did because Lennox beat every man he ever faced as a professional.”
BT Sport Box Office will show Tyson Fury v Derek Chisora exclusively live on Saturday 3rd December. Live coverage starts from 7pm, with ring walks taking place at 9pm. Learn more at bt.com/sportboxoffice
