Whyte vs. Franklin: Will Dillian retire if he loses on Nov.26th?

By Boxing News - 11/12/2022 - Comments

By Jack Tiernan: Dillian Whyte’s career is on the verge of imploding as he heads into his fight this month against Jermaine Franklin on November 26th on DAZN.

Whyte (28-3, 19 KOs) has lost two out of his last three fights and is in a must-win situation against the unbeaten American Franklin (21-0, 14 KOs).

If Whyte gets plowed into the canvas by Franklin, he almost has to retire because there would be no big money fights available after a loss like that.

The 34-year-old Dillian has reportedly changed out his training team in hopes of turning things around, but it’s doubtful that will help matters because it’s his punch resistance that has failed him in those losses.

It doesn’t matter who is the captain of Whyte’s ship in the training department; they’re not going to help him take shots better.

Whyte used to be able to take a good punch without nosediving to the canvas, but since his fight with Oscar Rivas in 2019, he doesn’t seem to take a good punch any longer.

If Whyte loses Franklin, he can say goodbye to a massive money fight against Anthony Joshua next year. He would unlikely get the opportunity to face any of the other big names on his wish list before retiring.

This week, Whyte revealed this four-fighter wishlist before he hangs up his gloves:

  • Anthony Joshua
  • Deontay Wilder
  • Tyson Fury
  • Oleksandr Usyk

It’s lucky for Whyte that Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn is willing to set him up with a massive payday against Joshua if he gets by Franklin because he surely doesn’t deserve that kind of a fight with his poor 1-2 record in his last three fights.

If Joshua’s own career wasn’t on the rocks, Hearn wouldn’t bother using Whyte as an opponent for AJ.

“He’s a big guy and has a little bit of power as well,” said Dillian Whyte to talkSPORT Boxing about his fight against Jermaine Franklin on November 26th.

“He says he’s going to knock me out. I love that kind of talk. To me, that kind of talk is sexy. Life has forced me to be a fighter and grow up to be a fighter.

“One of the things I like to do best is to fight. That’s what I continue to do is fight. To fight for what I feel I deserve and what I should have.

“It’s not that I don’t mind saying goodbye,” said Whyte about him changing training teams. “Listen, I respect everybody. Everybody that’s helped me along the way, I respect them, and I love them, and I still have a good working relationship with them, and I still speak to them.

“Sometimes in life, you need to make changes. In my last three fights, I’ve obviously had two losses. So something needs changing. I can’t keep ignoring the fact that something needs changing. I need someone with technical support and experience that’s not there.

“You have to try. You can’t stay in the same place. If you’re in the mud, you have to get up and go for a walk. You can’t just say, ‘It’s muddy here, I’m just going to stay. No, you have to get up and see what is elsewhere sometimes,” said Whyte.

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