Chisora and Haye Brawl At Press Conference, Vitali Giggles

by Trey Pollard

German police have arrested British heavyweight Dereck Chisora and are searching for his countryman, former heavyweight champ David Haye, after the two clashed at a bloody press conference following Chisora’s bout with Vitali Klitschko in Munich on Saturday night.

Haye slammed a bottle across Chisora’s face and wielded a camera tripod as a weapon during the melee, which left Chisora and Haye’s manager Adam Booth bleeding from the head, saw Chisora shouting death threats at Haye, and threw the British Heavyweight division into crisis.

That’s not the lede most would have expected after Chisora gave Klitschko his toughest test in a decade during a 12-round points loss. But after Chisora’s extra-curriculars pushed this fight weekend to the brink of chaotic instability, it’s not a huge surprise.

Chisora did all he could to provoke Vitali Klitschko in the build up to their fight, delivering a slap to the Ukranian’s face at the weigh-in and spitting water in brother Wladimir’s face during ring introductions. Chisora, typically an abrasive character, was pushed further by resentment after Wlad backed out of two fights with him in the last 18 months. The tension was compounded by a pre-fight dispute over handwraps, which led to a shouting match in the dressing rooms between Chisora and Wlad.

After a solid fight that was anything but dirty, the animosity resurfaced. Vitali and Wlad exchanged words and shoves with Chisora after the fight; the bad blood clearly lingered.

So how did the two Brits end up fighting each other in the press room?

As it turns out, Haye had been the fly in the fight’s filthy ointment all evening.

Having already been embarrassed into retirement by Wlad during a decision loss last year (a loss he unconvincingly blamed on a broken toe), Haye’s comeback ambitions are focused on Vitali - considered by some to be the weaker of the two Klitschkos. So, when he was invited by Britain’s Box Nation TV network to serve as a commentator for last night’s bout, Haye took the opportunity to relentlessly and desperately promote his own credentials.

Goaded on by Box Nation’s Steve Bunce and Jim Rosenthal, Box Nation’s broadcast turned into an infomercial for Haye, full of excuses for his loss and arguments that Haye could take down the lesser Klitschko. In talking up the non-event, Bunce even absurdly claimed a fight between the disgraced Haye and Vitali could sell 80,000 seats - even as 13,000 were settling in behind him for Vitali’s latest match.

We can only assume Box Nation would have the TV rights for Haye-Vitali.

One way or the other, the evening built Haye’s fragile confidence enough that he took it upon himself to open negotiations for that fight by shouting from the back of the room during the post-fight presser.

Berated by both sides of the panel, Haye was relentless. While Vitali’s manager praised Chisora for fighting with heart and derided Haye for doing the opposite, Haye yelled. While Chisora told him to shut up, Haye yelled. When Chisora’s manager called Haye “a salesman,” Haye yelled. When Chisora’s promoter Frank Warren suggested Vitali fight the winner of Haye-Chisora (a good idea), Haye yelled.

Ultimately, Chisora took a wireless microphone and walked toward Haye, demanding he deliver the insults to his face. And, the next thing you know, Haye swung a bottle at Chisora’s head and all hell broke loose.

Such is the state of the heavyweight boxing world dominated by the Klitschko brothers that the post-fight press conference is more interesting than the fight itself. But, as it stands, the next fight for Chisora - one of the heavweights that has demonstrated potential to grow into a champion - will probably be in a courtroom. As for Haye, he’s maintained silence on his usually active twitter account and would be well-served by a PR expert and a good lawyer.