Dillian Whyte has his sights set on a showdown with Tyson Fury next year despite pulling out of his bout with Otto Wallin.
Londoner Whyte was due to face Sweden’s Wallin this Saturday but withdrew due to a shoulder injury.
Wallin’s promoter Dmitriy Salita has called for the fight to be rescheduled but Whyte said he would not turn down the chance to take on WBC heavyweight champion Fury if the opportunity arose.
“This is a no-brainer – Tyson Fury is considered the best heavyweight ever,” Whyte told the BBC’s 5 Live Boxing podcast.
“It’s Wallin or Fury next. Of course Wallin is going to be upset. He’s spent money he thought he was going to earn.
“Many times I’ve had fights fall through, you can’t be upset. This is an investment in your career and your future.
“I see why he’s upset. But what you have to realise is, some fighters don’t dodge fights, some fighters don’t pull out of fights. If I have an injury, I have an injury.
“But in that time, if a potential better opportunity comes up – I’ve been waiting to fight for the world title – I’m not going to put it off to fight Otto Wallin.”
Wallin said he wants to see proof that Whyte is injured, but the 33-year-old hit back, saying: “People know I don’t pull out of fights.
After an MRI scan on his shoulder today and consultation with the specialist, unfortunately @dillianwhyte is not fit to fight on October 30. The show will proceed without Dillian and we look forward to seeing him back in the ring shortly 👊 pic.twitter.com/bEz0UOOTJ8
— Eddie Hearn (@EddieHearn) October 20, 2021
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“My shoulder just completely shut down – I was in pain. (I) came out of the ring and said ‘something’s not right here’.
“We went and did an MRI the next day and it showed my shoulder was way worse than I thought it was. I wanted to fight.
“I said if we managed it, got an injection before the fight, I’ll fight. I didn’t want to pull out. I begged them to fight. If I need surgery after, I need surgery after. I’ve done it before, nothing new to me.”
