Boxing

Dillian Whyte: Professional boxing career record, stats and figures

Dillian Whyte takes on Alexander Povetkin on August 22 with the hope of maintaining his WBC heavyweight mandatory challenger status. A win for Whyte would then see him fight one of Tyson Fury or Deontay Wilder for the title.

Ahead of the bout, we take a look at Whyte’s career to date.

Tale of the tape

Name: Dillian Whyte

Nickname: The Body Snatcher

Nationality: British

DOB: 11/04/1988

Age: 32

Height: 6ft 4

Reach: 78 inches

Stance: Orthodox

Professional record: 27-1-0

KOs: 18

Rounds: 155

Professional debut: 13/05/2011

Biggest fights

Whyte vs Chisora I – 10/12/2016

This fight back in 2016 was an eliminator for the WBC world heavyweight title, which at the time was held by Deontay Wilder. Dillian Whyte and Derek Chisora did not hide the fact that the pair weren’t on the best of terms and this was clear not just throughout the fight, but in the build-up also.

In the opening rounds, a 32-year-old Chisora laid some heavy shots on ‘The Body Snatcher’, but this all changed as Whyte came back strong near the end of the seventh round. Neither men were knocked down in the bout despite both of them landing hefty blows.

Watching at ringside, Tony Bellew stated that the fight “took me back to the Ali days, the Frazier days”. Whyte won on points after an enthralling fight.

Whyte vs Chisora II – 22/12/2018

In 2018, the pair squared off once again in what was another blockbuster bout. As expected, Chisora came out of the blocks quickly, swinging heavy punches at Whyte. These were countered well and Whyte managed to land some shots of his own.

Chisora looked strong in the opening few rounds, delivering on his word in the build-up, stating he would bring a fast tempo to the fight. It was not until the midway stage when he showed signs of tiring and had points deducted for repeated low blows on Whyte.

Whyte continued to look fresh throughout the clash and landed the deciding punch in the 11th round, flattening Chisora. The force of the punch was so great it took a few moments for Chisora to get up off the canvas, as Whyte celebrated victory.

Whyte vs Rivas – 20/07/2019

Whyte met Oscar Rivas in 2019, in what was a bout for the interim WBC heavyweight championship. The winner was to be number one contender for the WBC belt that was, at the time, still held by Wilder.

Whyte’s reach was too much for Rivas for most of the bout and he looked comfortable for the majority of the fight. He was rocked momentarily when Rivas had him on the canvas thanks to a quick uppercut but quickly regained control and comfort before going on to win on points.

Whyte beat Rivas but many questions remained. Could he defeat Wilder after a less than satisfactory performance? Of course, now he doesn’t need to, but has a completely different boxing giant to deal with in Tyson Fury if he can remain as WBC heavyweight mandatory challenger.

Next: the fight against Povetkin

Up next for Whyte is Alexander Povetkin on August 22 – a fight he must win to keep his mandatory challenger status. Whyte is currently the 1/4 favourite for the bout, with Povetkin, who boasts an impressive 35-2-1 record, the 11/4 underdog.

Both of Povetkin’s losses have come against elite-level boxers in Wladimir Klitschko and Anthony Joshua, where he’s performed well in defeat. Povetkin is a very good boxer who is both solid and tactile, however, he is nine years Whyte’s senior and his opponent’s explosive power may be too much for Povetkin to handle.