WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury will defend his title against Dillian Whyte on 23 April, in an all-British clash at Wembley Stadium.
The London venue was also the setting for this afternoon’s press conference, the first in the build-up to the highly-anticipated bout. Fury has been incredibly vocal since the fight was confirmed – and even before that – taunting his fellow 33-year-old at every opportunity. Mandatory challenger and interim champion Whyte, in stark contrast, has been largely silent, leading Fury to label him a “coward” in the run-up to today’s press conference.
Fury gave his opponent a new nickname today, however, labelling him “Frillian White Knickers” as Whyte missed the event in order to focus on his training in Portugal, where the Londoner lives. Fury’s US promoter Bob Arum explained: “We won the purse bid, which was way higher than the next biggest bid, and [Whyte’s] not coming to the press conference because we wouldn’t give him a percentage of the upside [from pay-per-view sales], which you don’t get in a purse bid. He told us he won’t come to any of the press conferences except the last one.”
Re-live updates from the first Fury vs Whyte pre-fight press conference, below.
