By Scott Gilfoid: In an effort to drum up more pay-per-view buys and subscriptions on DAZN and Sky Sports Box office, Eddie Hearn is adding heavyweight Dillian Whyte to the December 7 Saudi card.
Hearn still doesn’t have an opponent for the 31-year-old Whyte, but is saying that the guy won’t be a top 10 contender.
It’s open for debate whether it’s a positive or a negative having Whyte on the December 7th card in Saudi Arabia. Whyte’s B-sample still hasn’t been revealed from before his last fight against Oscar Rivas, and it’s unclear what the holdup is with UKAD.
Whyte won’t fight a top 10 guy – Hearn
“It’s not going to be a top five-10 guy. But it will be a good fight. We’re working it out,” said Hearn to IFL TV.
If Whyte isn’t going to fight a top 10 opponent, then what’s the point in having him on the card? He’s 31-years-old, and ranked #1 by the World Boxing Council. Why isn’t’ Whyte being put in with a top tier heavyweight? It doesn’t make sense for Whyte to be spoon fed competition after 10 years as a pro, does it?
The main event on the card is Anthony Joshua vs. Andy Ruiz Jr. If that’s not enough to get the boxing public to want to order it on Sky Box Office or subscribe to DAZN, it’s doubtful that Whyte will attract the fence sitters.
Dillian hs won his last 10 contests since losing to Joshua by a 7th round knockout in July 2015. Most of the guys that Whyte has fought in the last four years have low level opposition.
Whyte lucky not to have been stopped by Rivas
Dereck Chisora and Oscar Rivas stand out among the crowd, and Whyte didn’t look great in beating either of those fighters.
Rivas knocked Whyte down in the 9th round in their fight in July 2019. In the 12th, Rivas hurt Whyte with a right hand to the head, and then nailed him with a beautiful right hook to the midsection that him ready to be stopped.
In a HIGHLY questionable move, referee Victor Loughlin then stopped the action and gave Rivas a warning for the body shot. Loughlin though the punch was low. It didn’t look low to Gilfoid, and sure enough, it wasn’t low on slow motion replay.
The time that Whyte was given to recover may have prevented him from being stopped. When the action resumed, Whyte was able to survive the round. The fight then went to the scorecards, and he won a close 12 round decision by the scores 115-112, 115-112 and 116-111.
There’s still no word from Hearn about Whyte’s B-sample from a UKAD test taken before his fight with Rivas. That’s what a lot of boxing fans are waiting for. He’s not suspended by UKAD, but his WBC mandatory status has been suspended by the sanctioning body.
