Carl Froch sees trouble ahead for Ben Whittaker, insisting Dmitry Bivol would dismantle him after watching the prospect barely limp across the finish line against Conor Wallace.
Whittaker took the unanimous decision in their IBF eliminator, but the final minutes erased much of the goodwill built in the early going. Wallace turned up the heat over the championship rounds. By the twelfth, Whittaker was clinging on, hitting the deck three times without an official count just to hear the final bell.
“Ben Whittaker’s not ready to step up to that level. You wouldn’t give Ben Whittaker a cat in hell’s chance against someone like Dmitry Bivol,” Froch said on his channel.
It is hard to dispute the critique. Whittaker flashed sharp reflexes early, but his engine sputtered down the stretch. He could not keep Wallace off him and relied on constant holding to survive.
Bivol will not grant him several quiet rounds to get comfortable. Against the top tier, that late collapse gets punished instantly.
That does not mean Whittaker needs to clean out the entire division before getting his shot. Running it back with Wallace makes complete sense right now. Whittaker has to prove he can control the full distance without turning the finish into pure survival mode.
From there, taking on the winner of Joshua Buatsi against Willy Hutchinson offers the ideal stepping stone. Passing those two tests builds a genuine case for a world title opportunity.
Whittaker going into a Wallace rematch or taking on the Joshua Buatsi versus Willy Hutchinson 2 winner looks like walking into a trap of his own making. Wallace gave away the first half of their fight, showing way too much respect. The moment Wallace realized Whittaker lacked the firepower to keep him honest, the entire dynamic flipped.
In a rematch, Wallace starts applying pressure from the opening bell instead of waiting until round nine. Whittaker’s stamina issues are structural. He relies on explosive twitch reflexes that burn through fuel fast, and when he gets tired, his only defense is excessive holding and looking for the canvas. If Wallace forces him to work three minutes of every round inside a phone booth, it could end badly for Whittaker.
Stepping in against Buatsi or Hutchinson is an even worse proposition. Buatsi is a punishing power puncher, with a good inside game, a heavy jab, brutal body punching, and deep professional grit. He would walk right through Whittaker’s cute shoulder rolls and beat him up along the ropes. Buatsi does not get confused by antics, and his punch output would drag Whittaker into the deep water where Whittaker consistently drowns.
Hutchinson might be wilder, but he brings relentless offensive volume, fast hands, and zero fear. He would make the fight messy immediately. Whittaker struggles badly when opponents refuse to fight at his preferred rhythm.
Whittaker might win rounds early against either guy with his jab and lateral movement, but over twelve rounds against that caliber of pressure and seasoning, his gas tank and willingness to suffer get exposed again. Unless his team protects him with carefully selected stylistic matchups, putting him in with Wallace again or the Buatsi-Hutchinson winner ends his title hopes.
