Dillian Whyte is never short of something to say about one of his rival fighters, and in the past, “The Bodysnatcher” has criticized Anthony Joshua.
The two Brits went to war in a great action fight back in 2015, with Joshua scoring a brutal stoppage win over Whyte, taking away his unbeaten record.
Whyte has craved a shot at redemption ever since. But now – with his March return with Alexander Povetkin an absolutely must-win fight for him – Whyte is suggesting Joshua might not have the desire to stay in the game too much longer.
AJ did say recently how he is “coming towards the end of my career,” and Whyte has taken this as a sign of Joshua perhaps being “comfortable” and thinking about “retiring and go do something else.”
“Maybe he’s comfortable, maybe his drive and desire is going down,” Whyte said of Joshua when speaking with Sky Sports. “He seems to be fighting a lot more defensively than he used to do.
Maybe he’s thinking, ‘You know what, I haven’t got long left, it’s a hard game.’ He doesn’t strike me as someone who loves fighting. He loves the business and he loves the opportunities.
Obviously, he’s a good athlete and a good boxer, but he doesn’t strike me as someone who loves to fight. I love fighting. I enjoy fighting for the sake of fighting. That’s why I’ll fight anyone and I’m always ready to go.”
There is no denying Whyte’s fighting heart. In fact, the fight with the dangerous Povetkin, which resulted in a stunning KO loss for Whyte last August, was not a fight Whyte, 27-2(18) had to take. But being a warrior, Whyte wanted to take a meaningful fight and not sit around idle. Hey, it backfired on him, but now Whyte has a chance to put things right in the rematch.
But will Whyte ever get the chance to avenge his loss to AJ? Whyte, who holds an amateur win over Joshua, says he and his fellow Londoner are currently “one all.”
“He definitely should do. Why shouldn’t he?” Whyte said when asked if Joshua will fight him again. “Currently, it’s one all. I look forward to the third fight in the future.”
Before that can happen, Whyte has to deal with Povetkin in March, while Joshua, 24-1(22) is reportedly closing in on that mega-fight with Tyson Fury. Who knows where Whyte and Joshua will be in around six months’ time. What price both do guys lose their next fight?