Dillian Whyte was absent from open workouts on Tuesday as his heavyweight title showdown with Tyson Fury looms.
Both boxers were expected to be put through their respective paces in front of a strong crowd at Wembley Boxpark ahead of Saturday night’s high-profile all-British clash at the nearby stadium, which will see a crowd of 94,000 in attendance.
But while Fury was there to showcase the results of another tough camp with trainer SugarHill Steward as he prepares to fight in the UK for the first time in four years, Whyte was again a no-show.
It is familiar theme for the long-time WBC mandatory challenger, who also did not attend a press conference launch last month as he instead opted to remain training at his base in the Algarve.
On that occasion Fury accused his rival of already waving the white flag in his long-running quest for heavyweight glory, though Whyte - who was initially unhappy with the financial split on offer - recently hit back by insisting that he won’t be drawn into any “mind games” and claiming that the self-proclaimed ‘Gypsy King’ did not attend a contracted press conference before his famous win over Wladimir Klitschko in Germany in 2015.
“I don’t care what Tyson Fury says. He says a lot of s**t,” Whyte said, per Sky Sports. “His mouth is like a toilet, he just keeps on flushing and flushing and flushing.
“I don’t really care about what he says and what he does. Me and him are going to have a fight regardless. I don’t care about mind games.
“Listen, I’m a fighter, I’m a warrior. If he wants it, any time, anywhere, I’m down.”
Despite Whyte’s absence from open workouts, ‘The Bodysnatcher’ is expected to attend tomorrow’s final press conference, when he will finally come face-to-face with Fury for the first time.
“We’ve resolved some stuff with Dillian,” said Fury’s co-promoter Frank Warren on Tuesday, per the South London Press. “I’m a bit disappointed he won’t be here today, but he will be tomorrow. Hopefully when they get together tomorrow we see some more fireworks.”