Now seems the perfect time to throw another potential fight into the muddied waters of the heavyweight boxing schedule, so how about Deontay Wilder vs Dillian Whyte on July 24?
That of course is the date when Wilder is supposed to have his trilogy fight with Tyson Fury in a bid to regain the WBC world heavyweight title he lost to ‘The Gypsy King’ in February 2020.
But on Thursday reports emerged – notably from ESPN – that the bout will have to be delayed due to a bout of COVID in the Fury camp.
Hearn says Whyte ready to face Wilder
While there is no definitive confirmation that Fury vs Wilder 3 will face a delay (September and October have been mooted as new dates), Matchroom supremo Eddie Hearn offered a solution to fill up that July 24 date on Thursday night. How about Dillian Whyte steps in for Fury…
‘The Body Snatcher’ has not been seen out since March when he sent Alexander Povetkin crashing into retirement with a brutal victory on Gibraltar.
Whyte, who is now waiting to find out if he will become the next mandatory challenger for the WBC title, had been due to have his next fight in the United States in August – and Hearn had stated it would be a gentler test after a string of tough matchups.
Now though he has dangled the carrot of another swim in the deep end, this time against the 35-year-old Wilder
Spoke to @DillianWhyte – he is due to fight end of August but ready to jump in July 24 v Wilder ????
— Eddie Hearn (@EddieHearn) July 8, 2021
If the delay to Fury vs Wilder 3 is confirmed it will be the latest twist in a frustrating saga which means neither man has fought in the 17 months since their Las Vegas rematch in February 2020.
Several attempts to get the trilogy match on in 2020 failed, and then Fury had planned an August 14 unification with Anthony Joshua before Wilder won an arbitration to force the third fight.
