By Elliot Foster

Joe Joyce will fight Dereck Chisora in seven weeks’ time.

The Olympic silver medal winner dismantled Donnie Palmer inside a minute, exclusively live on Channel 5, as he warmed up to fight the former British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight champion.

Joyce had long been linked with a fight against ‘Del Boy’, but it appeared finances were getting in the way.

However, after ‘The Juggernaut’ demolished Boston’s Donnie Palmer inside a minute –– 38 seconds, to be precise –– at York Hall, it was revealed by David Haye that his charge will face Chisora on May 5.

The fight will form part of the supporting cast to the aforementioned Haye’s heavyweight grudge rematch against Tony Bellew, exclusively live on Sky Sports Box Office, at the O2 Arena in London.

And it was set up by a sensational showing from Joyce against the six-foot 10-inch American, who was 9-1-1 with eight stoppages heading into the ring.

“I was quite surprised at how easy it was,” Joyce, 32, told the TV in the aftermath of the fight. When I landed the right hand, I thought he would have stood up to it, but we’ve been working on being explosive and he was down.

“I thought he would be really awkward and hard to hit, but this just shows how good I’m progressing and how explosive I’m becoming under Ismael Salas and Ruben Tavares.

“I’ve just got to keep improving and climb the ladder to get to the top of the sport again, just like I did as an amateur.”

David Haye said that he believes the fight between Joyce and Chisora will only go one way.

“We’ve given him the money he wanted,” he said. “Eddie Hearn and I managed to rustle up enough money, a healthy financial package, one that is as much as he’s had for his last two fights, for the fight and I believe my boy is going to do a job on Dereck.”

Joyce added that he wanted to let everyone know what level he is at before pushing on to bigger and better things.

Also on the York Hall card, Matty Askin made the first defence of his British cruiserweight title courtesy of a stoppage victory.

The Blackpool-based champion, trained by Michael Jennings, dropped Stephen Simmons with a sickening left hook to the body in the second of 12 scheduled rounds to put an end to proceedings as the Scottish challenger failed to beat the count of the referee.

And Ruqsana Begum drew with Ivanka Ivanova –– who was initially not wearing a protector –– on her professional debut after a scorecard of 38 points apiece was turned in.