By Scott Gilfoid: Eddie Hearn says Dillian Whyte will be fighting on October 30th at the O2 Arena in London, possibly against Chris Arreola if the American is willing to come over to the UK to take the match.
With the 40-year-old Arreola (38-8-1, 33 KOs) having lost his last two fights against Andy Ruiz Jr. and Adam Kownacki, he’s not exactly the ideal opponent for Whyte to be facing next.
For those that don’t know, Whyte’s October 30th fight isn’t about him facing an opponent with any real chance of beating him. It’s more about putting Whyte in a gimme fight to showcase him and ensure that he doesn’t get knocked out again before he cashes in on a big payday fight against WBC champion Tyson Fury.
Dillian got knocked out last year by 40-year-old Alexander Povetkin, which blew his chances of fighting for the WBC title in early 2021.
Luckily for Whyte, Povetkin came down with COVID-19 late last year and was a shell of his former self when they fought in a rematch last March.
It’s fair to say that if Povetkin were the same version as he was last year, he would have knocked Whyte out a second time and put his career on skidrow.
Whyte is vulnerable in the chin department, which makes things tricky for Hearn when it comes time to finding opposition for him to fight.
One wrong move by Hearn in the selection process could prove to be curtains for Whyte’s career as we know it.
Hearn has done a fine job of skillfully maneuvering Whyte to get him to this stage with only two defeats, and he cannot afford another loss if he hopes to challenge for a world title in the little time he has left in the sport.
Arreola has lost his last 2 fights
If Arreola makes the cut to get the fight with Whyte, the Matchroom Boxing promoter Hearn would be banking on the casual boxing fans being unaware that the American has lost his last two fights.
Whyte-Arreola would have meant something if Hearn had made the fight ten years ago when Arreola was still in his prime at 30, but, of course, Whyte was beginning his professional career in 2011. Making this right now is forlorn and sad.
A better option for Whyte’s October 30th fight:
- Michael Hunter
- Frank Sanchez
- Otto Wallin
- Felip Hrgovic
- Andy Ruiz Jr
- Arslanbek Makhmudov
- Efe Ajagba
Whyte was previously added to the undercard of Canelo Alvarez’s next fight on September 18th in the United States, but those plans changed when the Mexican star chose not to fight on that date.
Dillian, 33, will now be back in the UK and arguably taking a safe fight against a non-threat so that he doesn’t mess up his chances to fight for a world title in 2022 or 2023.
Hearn says several other fighters are looking to challenge Whyte (28-2, 19 KOs) for his WBC interim heavyweight title. Some of the names Hearn mentioned are as follows:
- Jermaine Franklin
- Cassius Chaney
- Charles Martin
American heavyweights Franklin (20-0, 13 KOs) and Chaney (20-0, 14 KOs) are undefeated but not well known, and neither of them is ranked in the top 15 by any of the sanctioning bodies.
Chaney is 34-years-old and never fought a top-level fighter, and Franklin is in the same boat as never having fought a contender.
“Hopefully, announce Dillian Whyte at the O2 soon,” said Hearn to Behind The Gloves.
“I’ve been speaking to Luis DeCubas about that fight, and there are a few others in the mix as well. I think if [Chris] Arreola wants that fight [with Dillian] in the UK, I think we can get it done,” said Hearn.
