Promoter Eddie Hearn said he felt sorry for Dillian Whyte (31-4, 21 KOs) after watching him get evaporated in one round by heavyweight contender Moses Itauma (13-0, 11 KOs) on Saturday night at the ANB Arena in Riyadh.
Hearn states that Whyte, 37, shouldn’t have been in the ring with someone like Whyte at this stage of his career. The inactivity worsened the situation.
Hearn Felt Sad for Whyte
“Very impressed, but I feel very sad for Dillian. He shouldn’t have been in there if I’m being honest,” said Eddie Hearn to Boxing News, reacting to Dillian Whyte’s first-round knockout loss to Moses Itauma on Saturday night.
Hearn shouldn’t feel sad for Whyte. He made millions tonight, and he’s a wealthy millionaire of a net worth estimated to be over $10 million. How many U.S journeymen can say they’re millionaires? He’s never won a world title and has always failed when facing good opposition. The only upset was when he beat Alexander Povetkin in their rematch after the Russian fighter came back from COVID. Whyte was knocked out in the first fight by Povetkin, but got over on him when he was rushed back after being ill with COVID.
“That was the worst matchup for him with no activity. I feel like that was always going to happen. Knowing Dillian at 38 years old, I found it hard to watch. That was one of the reasons he took the fight. The money was great,” said Hearn.
Whyte didn’t belong in there tonight with Itauma, but you can understand why he was chosen. He was along the same lines as recent Itauma opponent, Demsey McKean, Mike Balogun, and Mariusz Wach. The way Whyte looked tonight, he’d have lost to most, if not all, of those fighters. McKean would definitely beat him.
Dillian’s Lost Punch Resistance
“Dillian is brave. He always believes he can win, but we always said those first three or four rounds were going to be horrendous for him. I didn’t expect them to be that horrendous,” said Hearn. “I just feel the punch resistance [wasn’t there]. It was a lot of fast cupping shots on the side of the head, but it wasn’t like [huge shots].”
The problems Whyte showed in his last fight against journeyman Ebenezer Tetteh last December showed that he has nothing left. That was just one of six other poor performances Dillian has had since 2019 that showed that he wasn’t only finished as a fighter, but was never that good to begin with.
Whyte’s History of Poor Fights
Look at the problems he had against Oscar Rivas in 2019, Mariusz Wach, Alexander Povetkin, Tyson Fury, and Jermaine Franklin. These are all fights in the last six years. All poor. Whyte was overrated from the start, just a puncher with no skills or chin.
“He didn’t look good on his feet, and someone as good and as special as Moses, it’s going to be really difficult if you can’t get through the start,” said Hearn.
Whyte made things worse for himself by choosing to retreat to the ropes and shell up in the first round. He wasn’t throwing anything back of substance, and he appeared to be afraid of being countered by the faster-punching Itauma. He fought like he had no confidence in his chin.
