Vitali Klitschko has vowed to take
revenge on Dereck Chisora on Saturday after being slapped on the face by
the WBC heavyweight title challenger 'like a woman'.
Londoner Chisora shamefully assaulted
an unsuspecting Klitschko as the two posed for traditional head-to-head
photographs after their weigh-in in Munich.
Champion Klitschko, 40, did not retaliate as the two men were pulled apart. But the Ukrainian has vowed to punish the Briton at the Olympiahalle.
Ready for war: Dereck Chisora slaps Vitali Klitschko at the weigh-in
'I'll be hitting him back tomorrow, in the ring,' he warned.
'He's not all there. Dereck is full
of nervousness and I feel he is afraid, otherwise he would not have
jumped back like he did.
'He hit me not like a boxer but like a woman, with an open hand. If he wants to fight properly, he must do that with his fists.'
Chisora, 28, is a rank outsider for the contest and attempted to get under the long-reigning champion's skin.
After weighing in at 17 stone 3lbs -
just a pound heavier than his lightest weight for a professional bout -
Chisora butted heads before slapping Klitschko's face hard.
Early shot: Chisora slaps Klitschko
Take that! Dereck Chisora slaps the face of Ukrainian heavyweight WBC boxing champion Vitali Klitschko during the stare down
The two men were pulled apart with a
furious-looking Klitschko, who had weighed in three pounds heavier, left
with a red mark on the left side of his face. Chisora's camp said they were unaware of the stunt beforehand, with trainer Don Charles even branding the slap 'unacceptable'.
Asked whether it was premeditated, the trainer added: 'I'm not Dereck Chisora. Like I said, it's unacceptable.'
Promoter Francis Warren, representing his father Frank's company, said: 'We're all scratching our heads about it to be honest.
'You always expect something from Dereck, he's a character. But it's usually something that winds people up or is a bit jovial.
'So for him to get physical and
aggressive, unprovoked, is surprising. But at the end of the day I'm
sure there's method to his madness and we'll find out if the madness has
paid off.'
Face to face: Klitschko and Chisora get physical at the weigh-in
Warren added: 'I was very surprised though. I wasn't expecting it at all. 'I don't think anybody wants to see that but it's happened now, so we'll move on and look forward to tomorrow night.'
Asked whether he expects sanctions
against Chisora, Warren said: 'That's up to the governing bodies to
decide. If there are sanctions then I suppose we will find out in the
next couple of weeks.
'I'll sit down and have a chat with Dereck about it but at the moment we're focused on tomorrow night.
'Dereck is obviously a fiery
character and that has got him to where he is. He can react like that to
situations but at the end of the day he is a boxer, a fighter. Let's
focus on the fight.'
Chisora challenges Klitschko in Germany despite two high-profile losses in his last three fights. Despite
being a relative novice, he has already seen two clashes with
Klitschko's brother Wladimir scuppered by the Ukrainian's injury
withdrawals.
Early shots: Chisora tries to gain the early physiological advantage over Klitschko
He was scheduled to fight the
35-year-old for the IBF and WBO belts in December 2010 before a stomach
injury forced the champion to pull out and the rescheduled bout in April
last year also fell through with Klitschko blaming a problematic
rehabilitation.
While Wladimir went on to beat
David Haye instead, Chisora remained at domestic level and lost his
British and Commonwealth titles to Tyson Fury.
Squaring up: Klitschko reacts to being slapped by Chisora
Though he went some way to redeeming
himself with a career-best performance against Finnish star Robert
Helenius before Christmas, a controversial split decision ultimately saw
him suffer a second career defeat.
The Zimbabwe-born Briton therefore
takes on long-reigning heavyweight king Klitschko as a huge outsider,
with some bookmakers pricing him as generously as 10-1 to dethrone the
champion in his adopted homeland.
Fighting fit: Vitali Klitschko weighed-in at 17st 6lbs
Del boy: Chisora tipped the scales at 17 stone 3lbs
Mean machine: Chisora turned up at the weigh-in with a Union flag over his face
'I'm the underdog in this fight which is
exactly how I like it because when I knock him out in the eighth round
it will shock the world,' said Chisora, who has a record of 15-2 (9KOs)
and is ranked 14th by the WBC.
'I know I've got to go in there and do a job on him. 'I'm
in tip-top condition and the best shape I've been in in my entire
career, so I'm confident I'm going to smash Mr Vitali Klitschko to
bits.'
P.S.
Chisora
does have previous when it comes to antics at the weigh-in. When he
fought Carl Baker in February 2010 he kissed his opponent during the
stare down. Chisora went onto knock Baker out in the second round.
Sealed with a kiss: Chisora plants a smacker on Carl Baker in 2010
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