David Haye and Dereck Chisora will fight in London on July 14, five months after the infamous brawl between the British heavyweights that led authorities to strip Chisora of his boxing license.
The fight at West Ham football club will be sanctioned by the Luxembourg Boxing Federation since the British Boxing Board of Control refused involvement because neither fighter has a license.
Chisora has appealed against the withdrawal of his license, while Haye relinquished his last year when he retired following the loss of his WBA title to Wladimir Klitschko.
Chisora’s manager, Frank Warren, said Tuesday that his fighter’s situation would not stop the bout taking place.
“He is not banned from boxing. The fight has been licensed by the governing body in Luxembourg, which has the same standards as the British Boxing Board of Control,” Warren said. “It is the biggest fight of the year and the fact of the matter is that the fight is legal, lawful and will go ahead.”
Warren previously said he would not be involved in a fight between the pair, who brawled during a news conference after Chisora lost to WBC champion Vitali Klitschko in Munich on Feb. 19.
But Warren said he changed his mind when British authorities delayed Chisora’s appeal against the withdrawal of his license, leaving the fighter to contemplate taking unemployment benefit.
“No charges have been made against Haye or Dereck for what happened in Munich,” Warren said. “He has lost half of his purse in sanctions and costs since the Klitschko fight.
“He has no qualifications, the next thing for him to do would be to sign on.”
The BBBC removed Chisora’s license in part also because he slapped Vitali Klitschko at the weigh—in for their bout and spat water at Wladimir before the fight.
The pair traded insults and blows in Munich after Chisora apparently taunted Haye, who was at the back of the room, over the loss of his world title.
Chisora even threatened to shoot Haye and said Tuesday that his rival had recently responded with a threat of his own when the pair ran into each other in London.
“I saw David Haye a couple of weeks ago and he pulled a knife,” Chisora said.
