Derek Chisora's long-time pal Tony Bellew is one of the few that have no interest in watching him fight Deontay Wilder in his next outing.
The hard-hitting heavyweight returned to winning ways after three years last night when he took a split decision win over Pulev at The O2 arena in London. After a gruelling 12 rounds with the Bulgarian, whose only previous losses were in world title fights with Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko, Chisora expressed interest in facing Wilder, who confirmed this year he is returning.
Wilder is one of the most feared punchers in combat sports history, and viciously knocked out every single one of his opponents before being stopped by Tyson Fury. The pair fought to a draw at first, in which he did brutally knock down the Brit, before Fury won the two rematches in their trilogy.
But Bellew is concerned about the concussive power Wilder holds. The former cruiserweight world champion doesn't want him to face his friend Chisora, who looked rough at times in his previous fights with Joseph Parker last year.
"That's the worrying thing," Bellew told DAZN host Laura Woods when asked where Chisora goes after his massive win over Kubrat Pulev in London. "It's tough to see where he goes and which fights he wants.
"I'd rather see him just fight Pulev again [than Wilder.]. Who wouldn't want to see that again? It's 1-1, I would pay to see that again - I'm not paying for [Chisora vs Wilder], I don't want to see that.
"Listen, I'm going to back him no matter what. But Deontay Wilder is one of the most ferocious punchers the heavyweight division has seen in a long, long time."
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Asked about perhaps a trilogy with Dillian Whyte, who he was defeated by over 12 rounds before being stopped in the eleventh in a rematch, Bellew was much more optimistic. "I'd love to see that," he said. "That excites me."
However, the heavyweight is anxious to make a series of big fights before his career is over, and one of the biggest out there is Wilder. He has never fought in America, and would love to face one of the most famous fighters over there in a cross-Atlantic bout.
"I last won a fight three years ago," Chisora told fans in the arena after beating Pulev. "I'm happy today but at the same time I'm sad. I don't have many left in me but what I do have I will give my all to you guys.
"I don't have many left, so my next couple of fights - I'm on my way out. I don't want no easy fights, I want the hard fights. I told Eddie Hearn the other day, if he can get me the Bronze Bomber I'll be happy. I want to fight everybody in my era. Win or lose, I just want to fight."
