Former Mike Tyson trainer Teddy Atlas revealed his dismay at the Tyson Fury vs Derek Chisora fight as a beating unfolded on Saturday night.
Atlas, who oversaw Tyson’s early boxing years before evolving into a respected analyst and coach in his own right, wasn’t happy with proceedings in the UK.
Providing commentary throughout Fury’s one-sided battering of Chisora, Atlas said: “Fury vs Chisora. Good to see old warhorse Chisora get a ‘pension’ plan after fifteen years of giving his all to the sport.
Mike Tyson’s ex-trainer, Teddy Atlas
“[Is Tyson] Fury carrying him? No, but he’s not in a hurry to get rid of him. Uppercut should be coming.
“Chisora has taken many. These are the fights that can be dangerous now. Chisora is taking sustained punishment. Dangerous.
“As I had said before, fight, and on our Podcast, this was a ‘pension’ retirement fight for Chisora. If you had listened to our Podcast earlier in the week, you didn’t need to watch the fight.”
Boxing columnist Steve Tannenbaum added his views on the collision.
Fury vs Chisora 3
“Fury vs Chisora 3 was a charade. It should never have happened and given sanction as a title fight by the WBC,” said Tannenbaum.
“Chisora, in truth, lost his last four contests going into the Fury bout. So don’t tell me Chisora defeated Pulev, as he was beaten in nearly every round in another one of those British robberies.
“No reason to stage a trilogy when you dominate a fighter in two previous meetings. Two dozen heavyweights would lick Chisora every day of the week and twice on Sunday.
“Never did Fury open up on him at any point. It reminded me of how Ali toyed with his sparring mate and old buddy Jimmy Ellis back in 1971.
“Ali refused to put it on Ellis when he obviously could have knocked him down—instead, signaling to the referee to stop it.
“The difference is Jimmy Ellis was a terrific, slick, and highly skilled fighter. He was an ex-champion who merited the fight with Ali.
“Chisora is big-hearted and heavy-handed but slow, plodding, and predictable. He has no imagination as a fighter. Furthermore, at best, he’s a world-class trial horse with a crowd-pleasing style.
“My guess is Chisora could still possibly get one more high-profile fight against someone like Fabio Wardley, who – unlike Fury, would not show mercy and knock him spark out. Good riddance!”
Chisora has already stated his desire to continue fighting, saying he cannot go out with such a hellacious beating.
