Dillian Whyte scored an emphatic knockout over Dereck Chisora on Saturday in London (Photo: Dave Thompson – Matchroom)

By Chris Robinson

On Saturday night, inside of the O2 Arena in London, heavyweight contender Dillian Whyte scored a brutal 11th round knockout over rugged Dereck Chisora in a rematch of their 2016 thriller. A highlight reel left hook from Whyte ended what was a competitive matchup beforehand, and left Chisora floored and all but out.

Whyte (25-1, 18 KO’s) was ranked #1 by the WBC and WBO heading into the matchup, and now looks to have an inside track towards a rematch with IBF/WBA/WBO champion Anthony Joshua. Chisora (29-9, 21 KOs) was deducted two points in the contest, one for a low blow in the eighth and later for an elbow in the 11th, yet was ahead on two scorecards (95-94) at the time of the stoppage.

“That left hook is my money shot,” Whyte said afterwards. “That shot is going to put a lot of people away. They can train for it as much as they want. I’ve been in deep waters and I can swim. I was in great shape. I wasn’t tired once, I was just pacing myself and I knew the knockout was going to come. Whoever wants it can get it. I want Joshua next! Let’s do this. Rematch!”

The 29-year old champion replied to Whyte’s challenge.

“Let’s forget about what’s happened in the past,” stated Joshua, who stopped Whyte in the seventh round of their December 2015 matchup.

“We were at British level in our last fight and now we’re at world level,” Joshua added. “It was a good fight back then but let’s see where we’re at right now. If anybody deserves a world title shot, I think it’s Dillian. Deontay Wilder is the target, but if it’s not him, it’s Dillian Whyte.”

Chris Robinson can be reached at CRobinson@hustleboss.com