Boxing news: Anthony Joshua title fight would be EASIER than Oscar Rivas - Dillian Whyte
DILLIAN WHYTE says his fight with Oscar Rivas is tougher than a New York showdown with Anthony Joshua would have been.
The Brixton brawler has been clamouring for a rematch with Anthony Joshua, who he suffered his only career loss to back in December 2015, for some time.
Since then, Whyte has gone 9-0 with two wins over Dereck Chisora and a defeat of Joseph Parker among his stand-out triumphs.
Whyte’s next bout sees him take on unbeaten Colombian Oscar Rivas on July 20 at the O2 Arena in London.
But ‘The Body Snatcher’ had put himself forward to be a replacement for Jarrell Miller as Joshua makes his debut in the United States at Madison Square Garden on June 1.
American Miller has been pulled from the bill after a trio of failed drug tests, with boxing promoter Eddie Hearn of Matchroom - who promote both Joshua and Whyte - scrambling for a fighter to step in and fill the void.
It now looks as though Mexican Andy Ruiz Jr will be confirmed as the man to step in and contest for Joshua’s WBA, WBO and IBF belts.
But Whyte had thrown his name into the hat to take on Joshua a second time in what would have been a colossal all-British battle across the other side of the pond.
Yet despite Joshua looking to become the undisputed heavyweight champion, and the first since Lennox Lewis in 2000, Jamaican-born Whyte says facing 26-0 Rivas is an even tougher test.
It’s a massive gamble. He’s a dangerous guy, a known commodity.
Speaking to Sky Sports Boxing, asked if facing Rivas presents a path to a rematch with Joshua, Whyte said: “I don’t know, heavyweight boxing, I just take it step-by-step, day-by-day.
“In heavyweight boxing, what you deserve you don’t always get. I’ve worked hard.
“I even said to him [Joshua] I’d step in June 1st and take the fight. I said that to him.
“I said, ‘Eddie [Hearn], I want to be an option. I’ve been training for four weeks already and AJ’s been in Nevada testing for VADA for eight weeks’ which is one of the things I wanted. I want him to be tested for a long time.
Dean Whyte jokes he’ll fight Anthony Joshua
“He was already on eight weeks so I said, ‘Yeah, I’m four weeks in. Let’s go.’
“Yeah of course I would [have stepped in] but I’ve got Oscar Rivas and I think he’s probably a much harder fight in ways because of his size and his build, how stocky he is, and the pressure he brings you know.”
On the Rivas fight, Whyte added: “It’s a massive gamble. He’s a dangerous guy, a known commodity.
“Very, very experienced, very, very schooled. He can punch. And he’s motivated as well. He’s quite a stocky guy so he looks strong.”