The Excel Arena in London will host what should be one of the biggest boxing cards in the UK this year on November 29th, as heavyweights Dereck Chisora and Tyson Fury meet. Also sure to get attention as a headliner on a card with a dozen fights scheduled is a middleweight grudge match between Billy Joe Saunders and Chris Eubank Jr.
In the heavyweight bout at the books, Fury is a solid (-300) favorite over Chisora, who returns at (+250). The match was signed and set for last September, but a Chisora injury caused the postponement. For Fury, really the only question is how much he has improved, as he has fought only once in the last 18 months.
He was scheduled to fight David Haye until that match fell through, and the delay with Chisora was not his fault, but he also pulled out of a fight with Alexander Ustinov after the weigh-ins because his uncle was sick. Something about Fury rings so fake.
The way he had described his family and their hardcore fighting nature, you would think that Uncle Hughie would have sent him to fight from his death bed rather than have Fury blubbering around while he recovers. Fury handled Chisora back in 2011 when they first fought, and despite the long layoff Fury has come a long way as a fighter since that time.
Perhaps more interesting, especially to the hardcore British fans, is the clash between undefeated Middleweights Billy Joe Saunders and Chris Eubank Jr. The fight is a clash of two completely divergent fighting communities on the Isles, both fiercely loyal. Saunders (20-0) comes from the British traveling communities and boasts a family of fighters, including his still living 95-year old great grandfather who fought in the famous fighting booths of the early 20th century.
Eubank comes from British boxing royalty, so to speak, as his father was one of the most decorated boxers, winning world championships in two weight classes. The mutual respect is non-existent, with the early line at the books having Saunders favored at (-160) over Eubank Jr, who returns (+136).
After the Chisora vs. Fury fight was re-scheduled, the pair appeared at a press conference to hype the November fight. Fury famously showed up with his mouth taped.
