Dillian Whyte becomes Deontay Wilder’s mandatory contender

Dillian Whyte moved one step closer to a title shot after his unanimous decision victory over Óscar Rivas. With his status as the mandatory contender for Deontay Wilder now set, ‘The Bodysnatcher’ will get his long awaited title shot.

After 600 plus days of being a number one contender whilst consistently being overlooked for a title shot, Dillian Whyte now knows his chance is certainly coming. After a gruelling fight with Óscar Rivas at the o2 Arena on Saturday night, Whyte survived being dropped in the ninth round to win via unanimous decision (115-112 x2, 116-111.)

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The Brixton native largely kept the Colombian at bay for the majority of the fight, using his jab to keep Rivas from allowing to get inside. Although, Rivas certainly had his moments during the fight when given the opportunity to get inside. Often working the body of Whyte with strong combinations and jabs. Despite wobbling Rivas in the second round, the Colombian did fantastically to compose himself and remain upright.

As the fight progressed, Whyte continued with his consistent control of the range. Rivas struggled to find his way inside where he play to his strengths, whilst Whyte may not have stunned his man again after the second – it seemed that he would work his way through the fight.

With the final stretch looming, it seemed that it would be Whyte’s night, having broken relatively little sweat in the contest. As the fight was rapidly slipping away from him, Rivas landed a strong uppercut that sent Whyte to the canvas. Clearly shaken by the first sign of trouble he had to encounter, Whyte showed his famous grit as he saw out the remainder of the round and even landed a few strong returning shots of his own.

The final couple of rounds saw Whyte return to controlling the range, clearly respectful of the power his opponent displayed to knock him down. Even through being knocked down, Whyte seemed to comfortably control the final moments of the bout as he had done for much of the fight.

Going forward, Whyte will now have to be selective in his bouts. With his mandatory status now sealed, ‘The Bodysnatcher’ knows that he is in-line for whoever holds the WBC belt. Whether it is Deontay Wilder or Tyson Fury or even Luis Ortiz, Whyte knows that he cannot afford to slip-up. He confirmed that he will fight again this winter, as he understands a fight for the title will be some time off, with Wilder booked for at least two fights (Ortiz and Fury.) Whyte jokingly called out Lennox Lewis before stating he wants a ‘tomato can’ next. Expect Hearn to protect his man with an easy tune-up fight this winter to keep Whyte ticking over.

David Allen vs David Price:

In a fight that was expected to steal the show, David Allen vs David Price perhaps didn’t bring the fireworks many expected. However, Price continued his strong recent form as he managed to win after his opponent threw the towel in.

Price showed impressive skill as he neatly outboxed his opponent. Through his well-picked and intelligent shots, Allen was left with little choice but to look for big overhands as he flailed at his opponent. As the fight progressed, so did the confidence of the Liverpudlian, landing strong shots to Allen in consistent volume. Left battered, bloodied and bruised, Allen struggled as the fight wore on.

Despite questions about his chin and ability in recent years, David Price continues his late resurgence. With many doubts about whether he would tire as the fight progressed, Price proved the doubters wrong as he continued to pound away at Allen who could land nothing of note.

Controlling proceedings, Price sapped all the fight and confidence from his opponent as Allen’s corner threw in the towel in the tenth round. Price continues his strong recent run of form in the ring. With a win over an opponent who was also ascending, this momentum is big for Price, who many thought should call time on his career not too long ago. However, with this convincing win over Allen, it seems the Liverpool native is making a run for the higher names in the division. Considering that Dave Allen was being considered for a fight against Alexander Povetkin, perhaps Price and the Russian could run it back.

Dereck Chisora vs Artur Szpilka:

With his last two outings in the o2 not being the most ideal, Dereck Chisora was looking to make a statement in this bout and that is something he certainly did. Having only won via decision in a frustrating fight last time out against Senad Gashi, Chisora desired a big result against Artur Szpilka in order to force another run for the top of the division.

The opening round saw Szpilka wobble ‘Del-boy’ although, the experience and toughness of Chisora allowed him to compose himself for the remainder of the round. The opening of the second round saw Chisora turn the tide as he stalked Szpilka around the ring before cornering the Polish heavyweight. From there, he unloaded a brutal right hand as Szpilka dropped his hands and stood motionless, Chisora landed a few more brutal punches that sent Szpilka to the ground in a heap.

Good work @DerekWarChisora ?? see you very soon ? pic.twitter.com/P7VMk7tEWz

— Joseph Parker (@joeboxerparker) July 20, 2019

Following the conclusion of the bout in the second round, Chisora wasted no time in stating his intent for his next fight. Immediately calling out former world champion, Joseph Parker. The Kiwi fighter took to Twitter to respond, where he seemed keen on the idea of sharing the ring with Chisora.