Dillian Whyte will face Moses Itauma in Saudi Arabia on August 16th in a hugely risky fight for Whyte, and a step-up for Itauma.
Dillian Whyte is coming off a turbulent period in his career of late.
Once the interim world title holder, Whyte’s career has struggled lately as ‘The Bodysnatcher’ has labored against lackluster opposition, withdrawn from three fights, including one against Joe Joyce and one against Anthony Joshua (as he failed a PED test), and suffered stretches of inactivity.
All of this combined has led many to the same conclusion: that ‘The Bodysnatcher’ may soon break into his signature howl for the very last time.
He is set to face 20-year-old rising star, Moses Itauma, who has not yet faced anyone of Whyte’s caliber, but is the favorite as a result of his youth, activity, and knockout power.
A win for either man will mean a seat at the big table, with big fights and even bigger paydays ahead.
Whyte recently reminded fans not to write him off, as the last time a big name was overlooked, it ended in a brutal knockout.
Dillian Whyte compares Moses Itauma fight to Carl Thompson vs David Haye
In an interview with The Ring, Whyte claimed that he was not surprised to be made the underdog going into his fight with Itauma, and doesn’t begrudge the young star for being made the favorite,
“Listen, I’ve been out in the long grass while he’s been in the limelight. He’s the new man. He’s shining. He’s knocking everyone out. He’s doing this, he’s doing that. There’s excitement about him and stuff.”
He did, however, warn boxing fans that overlooking a fighter is never a good idea,
“People’s memories are short in boxing. You remember a few years ago when David Haye fought Carl Thompson? Carl Thompson was just a dangerman in the wilderness. No one cared about Carl Thompson. David was blowing everyone away, smashing everyone’s heads in. And then, look, Carl Thompson showed up and got the job done.”
Whyte, who ripped into Derek Chisora recently, likens his own fight with Itauma to that of Thompson vs Haye, which took place in 2004.
Haye was 10-0 at the time, having won all 10 of his fights via knockout, whilst Thompson was 32-6, having won four of his last five fights, though three of those victories came against journeymen.
Haye was 18 years younger than Thompson, whose only family didn’t want to attend the event for fear of what might happen.
The 40-year-old Thompson shocked the world that night, though, as he weathered a storm against Haye before forcing a fifth-round stoppage win over the Brit.
Whyte said, “I am definitely the Carl Thompson in this scenario. We’ve seen it so many times in history.[…] It has happened before. There are so many examples, so let’s see what happens.”
Dillian Whyte claims Moses Itauma has ‘the bliss of ignorance’ on his side
Ahead of the fight, Whyte maintained that he has faith in his ability to get the job done, but claimed he did not want to give too much away regarding his plan, in case Itauma’s team catches wind of it.
He did, however, express that Itauma’s youth is his biggest advantage not only for the obvious reasons of strength and speed, but a more obscure reason – ignorance.
“He’s got the bliss of ignorance. He hasn’t been tested, he hasn’t been hurt. Right now he’s all positive, he’s knocking everyone out, everything’s getting great in this career, […] He’s got that on his side.”
Lawrence Okolie thinks Itauma will KO Whyte, while Whyte’s former foe, Dave Allen, thinks Itauma is all wrong for ‘The Bodysnatcher’. Even Whyte’s former coach, Mark Tibbs, cannot see Whyte beating Itauma.
Though Itauma’s confidence may be his biggest weapon, Whyte, too, bears the belief that he can get the job done, just like a certain ‘dangerman in the wilderness’ did 11 years ago.