By Charles Brun: Dillian Whyte says Anthony Joshua should be fighting him instead of Kubrat Pulev. Dillian views the 38-year-old Bulgarian Pulev (28-1, 4 KOs) as “OLD” and a “half-vegetable” at his age.
Whyte is bitter to the extreme about Joshua not having given him a rematch all these years. However, Whyte had a chance to fight Joshua in 2019, but he turned the fight down. So instead of Joshua facing him, he defended against Andy Ruiz Jr.
Pulev is an OLD man, Joshua should fight me – Whyte
“Joshua says he wants to fight me; he just keeps talking. He should be fighting me and not Pulev,” said Dillian Whyte on Youtube. “That’s a dead fight. Pulev is the real cabbage. He’s the first half-vegetable, half-man.
“And he’s old now; he wasn’t even good when he was in his prime. He’s got a good jab, but that’s it. I was up for the fight [with Pulev], but they wanted to do it in Bulgaria.
“We offered to fight him here for $1.7 million, and then they turned the fight down. They then said I was scared. I was never scared. I just want to fight the best.
“I’m not the best fighter in the world, not the strongest or the fastest, but there’s something I bring, and they all know it,” said Whyte. “They all know there’s something that I bring. When it’s work time, I show up and punch my work ticket. I clock in my hours,” said Whyte.
Dillian could have fought Pulev, but he failed to take that fight. That would have earned Whyte a title shot as well, but instead, he’s made his path. The way that Whyte’s career has gone in the last five years, he’s taken money fights but failed to take advantage of opportunities when they presented themselves.
These are the money fights that Whyte has taken since 2016:
- Dereck Chisora x 2
- Oscar Rivas
- Joseph Parker
- Lucas Browne
- Robert Helenius
- Mariusz Wach
The matches that Whyte SHOULD have taken were against Joshua, Pulev, and Luis ‘King Kong’ Ortiz. It’s easy for the average person to pick the fights that Whyte should have taken with his career, but he’s done things his way. Once Whyte started getting good paydays for low-level skirmishes, he failed to make the right moves.
Whyte could have fought Joshua in 2019
For Whyte, it was a significant blunder, and in keeping with some of the decisions that he’s made. The other mistake Whyte made was not agreeing to face Luis Ortiz in a WBC mandated title eliminator in 2018. Whyte chose to take on Dereck Chisora instead, which impeded his progress in earning the WBC mandatory position.
Whyte’s views on the Joshua-Pulev fight don’t change the fact that Joshua has a contractual obligation to face him. Pulev is Joshua’s IBF mandatory challenger, having earned the position by beating Hughie Fury in a title eliminator in 2018. If Joshua elects to not defend against Pulev, he’ll be stripped by the IBF.
Dillian is facing Alexander Povetkin (35-2-1, 24 KOs) on July 4 at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, UK. It’s only a matter of time before that fight is postponed, just like Joshua’s previously scheduled June 20th defense against Pulev.
Whyte (27-1, 18 KOs) is unhappy that IBF/WBA/WBO heavyweight champion Joshua (23-1, 21 KOs) talks about wanting to fight him, but then never follows through.
Though Whyte did tangle with Joshua in 2015, it didn’t go well for him. Joshua knocked Whyte out in the second round, and he was only competitive in round two. The rest of the fight saw Joshua batter Whyte like an old drum.
Whyte wanted more money for the Joshua fight last year, and that wasn’t going to happen. The reason being is Whyte didn’t have anything to drive up his value. He still hadn’t won a world title, thanks to his decision in choosing not to face Luis Ortiz in a WBC ordered title eliminator. There was no reason for Joshua and Matchroom Boxing to throw massive amounts of money at Whyte at the time.
Whyte expecting best Povetkin ever
“The best Alexander Povetkin ever. When fighters get to this stage in their career, they realize a loss could be their last shot at a title,” said Whyte on his channel. “It’s a win-win for him anyway. He’s an Olympic gold medalist with way more experience than me. He’s a tough guy, you know?
“I want to knock people out on a daily basis, to be honest. I can stand up and brawl all day long. It doesn’t matter to me. I’m not scared to get knocked out or knocked down. I’ve always had that mindset.
“Anyone that wants it can get it. I don’t really care. You win, you lose, you draw, and I don’t worry about it. There’s nothing to worry about. Just leave it all in the ring and fight,” said Whyte.
The Povetkin fight will be a tough one for Whyte, and it could be a slippery banana skin that ruins his title hopes for good. Povetkin can do everything that Whyte can do, and he possesses better punching power. Whyte hits hard with his left hook, but that’s the only dangerous weapon in his entire offensive arsenal.
It’ll be a mistake if Whyte attempts at beating Povetkin by using the same roughhouse tactics that he employed against Joseph Parker. Povetkin can fight back using similar methods, and that’s not what Whyte will want. If Whyte can’t beat Povetkin by keeping it clean, it’s not going to help him if he chooses to make it a dirty fight.
Whyte lucked out in his two fights with Chisora, as he got the right scores in the first fight and the fight-saving calls in the second. He didn’t perform well in either contest, and only a slim margin separated him from Chisora.
