By: Sean Crose
“It’s a must-win on Saturday,” promoter Eddie Hearn said at the final press conference for this weekend’s Dillian Whyte-Jermaine Franklin heavyweight title fight in London. Hearn’s boxer, Whyte, was last spotted being brutally knocked out by WBC and heavyweight tycoon Tyson Fury last spring. If he loses to Franklin, a mostly unknown but still-unbeaten American, it may be time for Whyte to consider retiring. However, Whyte exuded confidence during Thursday’s press conference. “One thing you have to know is that I can fight,” he told the media, “and I can fight. It’s as simple as that. Either way, I’ll get it done. It’s as simple as that.”
Whyte points out that he considers Franklin a serious contender. “We know what lies ahead,” Whyte said of his opponent. “He is young and very dangerous. Obviously he’s undefeated and he’s full of beans as we say here in the UK. It’s up to me to defeat them one by one. That is exactly what I will do.” While there’s no doubt the now 34-year-old Whyte has been a leading contender in boxing’s post-Klitschko era, but he’s fallen to the likes of Fury and Anthony Joshua.
Meanwhile, Whyte seems acutely aware of the fact that he is being viewed as spoiled brat at this point in his career. “Right now people are thinking I’m a wounded lion.” he say. “All these hyenas are trying to move in and gnaw a little bit here, a bite there. What they have to remember is that I’m still a predator at the end of the day, and what predators do is kill them.” To prepare for this weekend’s hunt, Whyte teamed up with famous American trainer Buddy McGirt.
“Dillian doesn’t just have punch power,” says McGirt. “After being with him for a few weeks, you will see that this guy has a very good boxing IQ. He does a lot of different moves, it’s awkward and it’s crazy but it works for him. If I ever asked him something like why are you doing this, he would explain to me why. I’m fine, let’s make it a little better so we don’t get counterattacked, or make it a little more effective. It was a great training camp so I have no complaints at all.”
