Dillian Whyte staying positive after Povetkin’s KO
The boxing world is still reverberating following Dillian Whyte’s (27-2, 18 KOs) shocking fifth-round knockout loss to Alexander Povetkin (36-2, 25 KOs). During an exclusive interview with Sky Sports Boxing, Whyte gave his assessment on what happened and how he’s coping.
“You know he’s a very dangerous guy. I was boss in the fight, I was winning the fight and I got caught.
It wasn’t like I got beat up round after round, I just got clocked. He dipped low, I shoot the hook and he came in with the uppercut and that was it.
But it’s all good to me. The main thing is we got the rematch and we’re gonna try to exercise the rematch and get it done by the end of the year, have a couple of weeks rest and get straight back in the gym.”
Whyte went on to explain that he doesn’t need to make any significant changes since he was in control of the fight before getting knocked out. It’s about fine-tuning and the smaller nuances that he did and, more importantly, did not do during the fight.
REMAINING UPBEAT
On the verge of finally getting an opportunity to fight for the WBC World Heavyweight title, the 32-year-old was asked if there are any regrets taking the fight against Povetkin.
“I have no regrets. It was a great fight. Povetkin done well. I know I can beat him and I showed it from round one, I was getting on to him.
But obviously, he’s a very experienced guy. His corner was on the verge of pulling him out and he pulled out one of the best punches of his career.”
And who can blame him for feeling that way, especially given how he put Povetkin on the canvas twice in the previous round?
TAKING IT IN STRIDE
The fighter who calls himself “The Body Snatcher” went on to say that those are the breaks when it comes to heavyweight boxing; the sport is full of ebbs and flows.
In the end, Whyte views what happened as a hard lesson to be learned. There were no issues in training camp and everything was going well in the lead up to the fight.
He told Sky Sports Boxing that he’s not down and he’s still one of the top heavyweights in the world. He is just eager for the opportunity to gain revenge and hopes a rematch can be arranged soon.
While outwardly expressing positivity, you can’t help but feel that Whyte is feeling gutted on the inside. All that the big man from the Brixton section of London had worked for came crashing down as a result of one huge left uppercut from the Russian.
It’s not over for Whyte, as he’s young and can come back. However, following such a devastating defeat, he’s definitely in rebuild mode. And in the immediacy, that means picking himself up and fighting Povetkin again. If he has any chance of getting a world title shot he desperately covets, that is his only choice.
By: Michael Wilson Jr.
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