by John Dennen

LAST December Don Charles found himself in the corner of not one but two of the best fights of the year, on the same night in Manchester. The trainer saw Frank Buglioni triumph in the final round over Hosea Burton only for Dereck Chisora to lose, in another thriller, to Dillian Whyte.

“Not for the faint hearted,” Charles reflected. “Going into that, taking two fighters to Manchester. Nobody goes into a fight thinking you’re going to lose, I believed we were going to win on both accounts with them.

“Frank went first, what an epic battle. We knew we had Hosea Burton’s number. We knew we’d pressure him and break him down and I knew eventually the pressure would take its toll [but] I didn’t think he was as good as what he was on the night, when I was doing my research on him. He showed more that night than I’d seen in his previous fights.”

Charles also believes that Chisora merits a rematch with Whyte. “A draw would have been probably the perfect result because even Dillian Whyte didn’t deserve to be called a loser that night,” Don said. “So a draw would have been the right result. But they didn’t believe so.”

His message for Whyte: “Do the honourable thing!”

“I believe it won fight of the year, 2016. Come on Dillian Whyte, if you’re reading this article, come on, get back in the ring. Don’t deny the British public what they deserve, they’re the playing public. Let’s give it to them again, it was beautiful. I say that now but on the night my heart was in my mouth. In the sense that it wasn’t entertaining for me as coach. Dereck went too fast, in my opinion, from the first round he was throwing bombs and Dillian retaliated. Which was what made it a great fight,” he continued.

He thinks it’s an option Dillian is unwilling to take at the moment. “I know for sure Dereck and his management team have offered Dillian Whyte a substantial amount of money for a rematch and he’s turned it down point blank. A very substantial amount,” Charles said.

“He got lucky, it was his day, he got the decision. He wants to go and get a world title. Even if he got a world title shot, who’s to say he’ll win? Also the money he’ll get challenging for a world title will be a third of what Chisora’s already offered him for a rematch.”

But if they can’t get the rematch they crave, could Chisora beat Whyte to a shot at WBC heavyweight champion, Deontay Wilder. “Why not? I believe he wants to fight in Britain,” Charles mused. “Dereck would be the perfect character… He could opt to fight us. Could we tempt him? That would be great.”

Beyond his notorious antics, like throwing a table at Whyte in a pre-fight press conference, Charles believes Chisora is rediscovering his form. “He’s an extrovert. He’s a very misunderstood person. He doesn’t help matters, his actions sometimes are outrageous. I’m not defending anything he’s done. I’m not telling you it’s okay to pick up tables. I condemn any actions like that. Definitely not allowed. There’s a method in his madness, if I can say that,” Don reckoned. “He deserves another shot at the world title. Any of the belts. But he’s got to get himself in contention.”