By Ian S Palmer
The Barclaycard Arena in Hamburg, Germany will be the site for the 12-round heavyweight showdown between Kubrat Pulev of Bulgaria and Dereck Chisora of Zimbabwe this Saturday, May 7th. The vacant European Heavyweight Championship is on the line and the winner could get a shot at newly-crowned IBF Champion Anthony Joshua of England. Pulev has won two straight since being stopped by Wladimir Klitschko in the fifth round a couple of years ago and Chisora has won five straight since losing to Tyson Fury. Pulev’s a former Olympian who last fought against Maurice Harris in December and stopped him in the first round. Chisora was in the ring in January and beat Andras Csomor by second-round TKO.
The 35-year-old Pulev climbs through the ropes with a mark of 22-1 with 12 Kos to his name. He turned pro in 2009 and has fought 147 rounds so far. Pulev isn’t a knockout artist by any means and has a current knockout ratio of 52 per cent, but any heavyweight can end a fight with one punch if it’s perfectly timed and lands on the button, and that’s what gives him a good chance here. Pulev is just over 6-feet-4-inches in height with an 80-inch reach and has a lot of amateur experience to call upon.
Most North American fans may not know much about him, but he stopped Alexander Dimitrenko in 11 rounds in May of 2012 for the European title and then stopped Alexander Ustinov in the same round four months later. He also beat the ageing Tony Thompson by a unanimous decision in 2013 and stopped Joey Abell the same year. He also has wins over the likes of Michael Sprott, Dominick Guinn, Derric Rossy, Matt Skelton and Zack Page. Pulev has good boxing skills and understands the importance of distance and timing and won’t be pushed around by Chisora.
The 32-year-old year-old Chisora, who fights out of England, climbs up the ring steps with a mark of 25-5 along with 17 Kos to his name. He’s been beaten twice on points by Tyson Fury and his other three losses came via a fifth-round TKO to David Haye in 2012, a unanimous decision loss to world champ Vitali Klitschko just five months earlier and a 12-round split decision defeat to Robert Helenius three months before that, meaning he went through a streak of three straight defeats. Chisora is just over 6-foot-1 and has a 74-inch wingspan. Chisora may be a little more skilled than people give him credit for. He can throw decent combinations when he’s in a rhythm, but often leaves himself exposed to counter shots.
Chisora’s defeated the likes of Malik Scott and Kevin Johnson, but has been beaten when stepping up in class. He’s fought 176 rounds since turning pro in 2007 and owns a 57 per cent knockout ratio. Pulev should use his height and reach advantages while Chisora will try to bob and weave his way to the inside without getting hit on the way in. Chisora doesn’t mind turning his fights into a brawl, but also needs to utilize some basic boxing skills, such as his jab, if he’s going to be successful against Pulev. He really has no choice but to get inside and go the body as well as the head. If he can frustrate Pulev and entice him into a slugfest then he’ll have a better chance.
Prediction
Pulev and Chisora are boxers who are good enough to get by until they meet Grade A opposition. Neither of them are perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but have enough talent to overcome fighters of the same caliber. They’ve both been stopped, but have relatively good chins. This bout’s close to being a toss-up as you never know how motivated Chisora will be and what kind of shape he’ll be in once the bell rings. Pulev needs to initiate the action and get off first and can’t afford to give away rounds. If he does this he’ll take home the vacant title by beating Chisora by a decision or late stoppage.
