At long last, Dillian Whyte gets his shot at major heavyweight honours this weekend, as the Briton challenges compatriot Tyson Fury for the WBC title.
In the build-up to Saturday’s bout, Fury has antagonised his former sparring partner to no end, while Whyte remained almost entirely silent up until this week, choosing to focus on his training camp in Portugal.
Whyte even skipped the first pre-fight press conference last month but has finally spoken out ahead of the fight, and the hype is rapidly increasing for this intriguing match-up.
Will Fury remain unbeaten and retain the gold, or will Whyte pull off what most fans and pundits would deem a huge upset?
Here’s all you need to know about the fight.
When is it?
The fight will take place on Saturday 23 April.
The first fight will begin at 6pm BST, with coverage starting from 7pm. The ring walks for the main event are expected to take place at 9.45pm BST.
Where will it take place?
The fight will take place at Wembley Stadium in London, marking Fury’s first contest on home soil since 2018.
Around 94,000 fans are expected to fill the venue.
How can I watch it?
In the UK, the event will air exclusively on BT Sport Box Office at a cost of £24.95.
In the US, ESPN+ will stream the action live at a cost of $69.99
What are the odds?
Tyson Fury – 1/7
Dillian Whyte – 4/1
Draw – 25/1
How much will the fighters earn?
Fury’s promoter Frank Warren won the purse bid with his effort of approximately £30million, which beat the £23m put forward by Whyte’s promoter Eddie Hearn. Both were record bids in the history of boxing.
An 80/20 per cent purse split was agreed in favour of champion Fury, though the split only relates to 90 per cent of the overall winning bid (£27m) – because the promoter must deposit the other 10 per cent.
As such, Fury will thus take home approximately £21.5m, while Whyte receives around £5.5m.
The winner will receive the 10 per cent deposit (£3m).
What are the fighters’ records?
Fury, 33, is unbeaten at 31-0-1 (22 knockouts), with a controversial split draw in his first fight with Deontay Wilder giving way to stoppage wins against the American in the “Gypsy King”’s two most recent bouts.
Whyte, 34, has a professional record of (28-2, 19 KOs). He last fought in March 2021, knocking out Alexander Povetkin to avenge his own stoppage loss to the Russian from August 2020.
Full card
Tyson Fury vs Dillian Whyte (WBC heavyweight title)
Ekow Essuman def. Darren Tetley via unanimous decision (117-111, 116-112, 116-112)
Nick Ball def. Isaac Lowe via sixth-round TKO (1:35)
David Adeleye def. Chris Healey via fourth-round TKO (0:52)
Tommy Fury def. Daniel Bocianski via decision (60-54)
Karol Itauma def. Michal Ciach via second-round TKO (2:27)
Royston Barney-Smith def. Constantin Radoi via decision (40-36)
Kurt Walker def. Stefan Nicolae via decision (40-35)
