Zak Chelli Says His Next Opponent Has the Same Problem David Morrell Did [Exclusive]

Chelli scored the upset of the year with eyes on a world title

David Morrell | IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

Zak Chelli is enjoying a much-deserved vacation.

The unheralded former British and Commonwealth champion shocked the boxing world with his stunning upset over two-division world champion David Morrell (12-2 with 9 knockouts). With the win, Chelli improved to 17-3-1 (with 9 knockouts) and is now ranked No. 10 by The Ring in the light heavyweight division.

KO on SI found odds as deep as 33-1 for Chelli to win by KO ahead of the fight. Other boxing news outlets have reported some odds were as high as 35-1 for Chelli to win. Odds were, of course, even higher for a 10th-round stoppage victory, which is exactly what Chelli earned over Morrell. Morrell had never been previously stopped.

David Morrell | IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

Chelli spoke to KO on SI from his vacation in Tunisia, where his father, Zakaria, is from, and where he is enjoying a long vacation after his long-shot victory. A career-altering victory that has put him in the driver’s seat of his career.

“I honestly, when the fight was announced, I knew I could beat him, I prayed for it,” Chelli said.

As the fight drew closer, Chelli said his confidence only grew. “As I was getting into the ring, I saw a vision of me winning by knockout. God revealed the path to me.”

Chelli almost closed the show in the 9th round as Morrell appeared to fade despite early success against his British-based opponent.

“In the 9th round, I gave it everything in the last 20 seconds, I kept throwing, occasionally glancing at the referee [to see if he would stop it]…and then in the 10th, that’s when I got him."

Who does Zak Chelli want to fight next?

Chelli was clear who he wanted next in the ring. He believes he can beat Callum Smith, the current WBO Interim World Light Heavyweight champion. Chelli says he got the better of Callum Smith when they sparred on two separate occasions as Smith prepared to face Artur Beterbiev.

Smith would lose his January 2024 fight with Artur Beterbiev (21-1, with 20 KOs) in Canada, but would bounce back with two wins.

“I woke up at 4 am on a Monday to be ready to spar at 10 am in Liverpool. We sparred six rounds. Then I hurried back to London on Tuesday, only to be told to come back up to Liverpool for eight rounds of sparring on Wednesday.

Callum Smith has rattled off two wins since loosing to Beterbiev in 2024 | IMAGO / Icon Sportswire

"Because I got the better of him, they invited me up again. In the second session, the trainer said after six rounds that it was enough – because he couldn’t catch me. Same with Morrell, he couldn’t catch me either.”