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Photo credit: BBC
Heavyweight contender Dillian Whyte 28-2 (19) is relishing the role of underdog ahead of his world title challenge against WBC champion Tyson Fury 30-0-1 (22) at Wembley Stadium in London, England on Saturday night.
“I’ve been counted out by people close to me – family members and friends, the teachers at school and neighbours – so, some guy on the internet or some journalist talking smack about me, it doesn’t mean nothing to me,” Whyte said. “This is not new territory to me.”
The 34-year-old Whyte was a longtime mandatory challenger for the green belt before suffering a shock knockout loss to Russian veteran Alexander Povetkin 36-3-1 (25) in August 2020. He reversed the result in the rematch, knocking out Povetkin in four rounds in March last year to claim the interim WBC title.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Whyte said. “We’ve worked hard. We fought top fighters and kept risking the position we was in, and even when it was mandatory, the fight didn’t happen.
“We actually had to go through a legal process to get Tyson Fury to fight us after he said he would fight us after he beat [Deontay] Wilder to become champion. Unfortunately, we had to push a legal angle and we finally got the fight and here we are.
“I’m up against a big guy. It’s a hard fight against an undefeated champion, but I feel good, and I believe that I’ll beat him. I’m very confident in beating him, so it will be good to shut a few people up.”
Whyte has been absent for much of the media events in the lead up to the fight, but he insist he was not derelict in his duty to promote the fight.
“It’s very hard to clap with one hand,” Whyte said. “You need two hands to clap. This is business. It’s not the Tyson Fury show. This fight is sold out because of me and Tyson Fury. We’re both in the fight together, so some things need to be done correctly.”
Whyte’s troubles in his early life have been well documented. He sees victory over the undefeated Fury, 33, as validation of his self belief and dedication.
“I’m a guy, as a kid – no future, no education, no family,” Whyte said. “I’m a survivor. I’m a kid who’s been in the streets, I’ve been in the streets since I was a child. For someone like me who’s come from nothing, never no sporting background, never had no backing, no support, to become heavyweight champion of the world, to me, that’s true inspiration. Real inspiration.
“I know what I am, I know what I bring, and I got a lot of pain and frustration to take out on someone, and it looks like it’s gonna be Tyson Fury, so let’s go.”
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