These two heavyweight prospects will possibly face one another for the vacant British title later this year but Anthony Joshua (13-0, 13 KO’s) and Dillian Whyte (14-0, 11 KO’s) have a rivalry that stretches back to their early amateur days; years before the Olympic gold medal hung from around Joshua’s neck, and before Whyte served a two-year suspension after testing positive for a banned substance.
Their careers have taken very different paths. Joshua has been at the forefront of Matchroom Sports’ campaign to promote him as the next genuine heavyweight contender from the UK.
He has knocked out each of his opponents in impressive fashion and does not look as if he will find a real match anytime soon if he continues to face the same calibre of fighter.
Up to now, he has been in against the usual arrangement of stepping-stone veterans with names more recognisable than their skill sets, and they have not offered much resistance.
Whyte could conceivably represent a step up for Joshua despite holding an almost identical record. He has been cast in the Clubber Lang mould, toiling on smaller, less glamorous shows than his celebrated counterpart.
The Brixton man is a young, hungry street cat who is desperate to make up for the time he lost in the sport, and he genuinely believes he can be the first man to beat Joshua in the professional ranks. After all, he has already done it in the amateurs.
This seems to be where their apparent dislike for each other stems.
Whyte beat Joshua in 2009 in the future Olympian’s second outing. It was a very entertaining bout that is still on Youtube for anyone who wishes to see it. Joshua hit the canvas early on and rose to fight on, but Whyte was the deserved winner. And thus was born the rivalry of these two giants.
This past week Whyte appeared on Sky Sports’ Ringside show (his comments were then posted on Skysports.com) to explain the situation as he sees it, saying that initially he was supportive of his rival’s Olympic pursuit, but his sentiments were rudely thrown back in his face.
“When he was in the Olympics, I supported him and said the only way he won’t win a gold medal is if he doesn’t train or doesn’t want it.”
“I don’t know, he must have been drunk or something, he called me a drug cheat and said he couldn’t take me serious and I only won [against him] because I had a kickboxing fight before.”
“I said ‘I didn’t kick you, we had a fight and I punched you in the face and you fell to the floor.’”
“That got me angry and I retaliated and called him a few names and that was what sparked it.”
From then on they have been tit for tat, and it is clear from both men’s demeanour when the other’s name is brought up, that there is a palpable tension underlying this contention.
When they will fight is still an uncertainty. Whyte is recovering from a broken hand which is a frustrating setback given his significant progress since his return to the paid ranks.
All five men that have stood across from him since his reintegration have fallen inside the distance. He has real momentum now and will hope this injury will not stifle the good work that has been put in over the last year.
While Matchroom has been setting them up, Joshua has continued to knock them down. His latest demolition job over American veteran Kevin Johnson was easier than it was supposed to be, and since his elevation to the lofty number two position in the WBC’s rankings, Joshua may have to take a significant step up in class if he is to continue his forward march.
The promotional drums are clearly beginning to toll for this fight to be made soon. Joshua has looked infallible so far, but the argument can be made that he hasn’t fought anybody that has come to win.
Whyte is certainly that, and if the Lonsdale belt is up for grabs when they meet it will provide a legitimate coating to a simmering rivalry.
