Deontay Wilder (44-4-1, 43 KOs) will return to the ring in April to face veteran British heavyweight Derek Chisora (36-13-0, 23 KOs), The Ring announced on Friday. The event will take place on April 4 from the 02 Arena in London.
“The Bronze Bomber” will be looking to win back-to-back fights for the first time since 2019, as the once undefeated heavyweight champion has gone 2-4 in his last six fights. Wilder did pick up a knockout win over Tyrrell Anthony Herndon back in June, bouncing back into the winner’s circle after losses to Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang.
Chisora enters the bout on a three-fight winning streak, defeating Gerald Washington, Joe Joyce and Otto Wallin in his three most recent fights. The 42-year-old “War” Chisora is among the most experienced heavyweights still fighting and has faced many of the biggest names in the division over the past two decades. Of his 13 losses, many are to former world champs, including Tyson Fury (three times), Joseph Parker (twice), Oleksandr Usyk and Vitali Klitschko.
This fight will be important for both men as they look to re-establish themselves as contenders in the heavyweight division.
Wilder and Chisora’s bout sets up a big April for the heavyweight division. Tyson Fury, the former champ with five combined wins over Wilder and Chisora, will end his latest retirement and return to the ring one week later on April 11 in a fight with Arslanbek Makhmudov in the United Kingdom. That fight could be the precursor to a highly anticipated bout with Anthony Joshua, although Joshua’s future in the ring remains in question after sustaining injuries in a fatal car crash in Nigeria in late December.