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Dillian Whyte has labelled Deontay Wilder as a ‘coward’ after claiming the American ‘ignored his duties as WBC champion’ by not offering him a shot at the title while he still held it.
The British heavyweight was left repeatedly frustrated in his attempts to fight the Bronze Bomber while he held the WBC strap before he was dethroned by Tyson Fury in their spectacular rematch earlier this year.
Talks of a trilogy bout between Fury and Wilder appeared to be dead in the water but could now be back on for early spring after the American’s claimed that he is contractually entitled to a second rematch, as revealed by Sportsmail.
Dillian Whyte (above) has slammed Deontay Wilder for dodging his challengers over the years
Whyte claims Wilder (pictured) ducked his attempts to fight while he was WBC champion
However, Wilder is keeping his options opened and is targeting a new opponent in 2021 – and he has put Whyte to the top of his list.
Whyte believes he is now only being targeted because he is Wilder’s last real payday and has slammed his attitude while he was champion.
Whyte told Sky Sports: ‘Tyson Fury is not fighting him, so who else can he make any money from? Deontay Wilder is not a big draw at all.
‘Even when he was heavyweight champion, he could not sell out venues, and I think he’s only ever had a couple of fights on pay-per-view. All he does is run around and talk s***.
Wilder lost the belt to Tyson Fury (left) who delivered a boxing masterclass to win the belt
Fury dominated the Bronze Bomber inside seven rounds during their rematch earlier this year
‘He’s a coward. Now he’s got nothing at all to lose, basically. He ignored his duties as the WBC world heavyweight champion. It’s shocking he was allowed to do it as well. Absolutely shocking.’
Whyte is currently preparing for his rescheduled rematch against Alexander Povetkin, after the Russian withdrew from their bout this weekend after contracting the coronavirus.
The Brixton fighter insists he remains focused on securing a long-awaited title shot but would be open to ‘knocking out’ Wilder for both British and American fans.
‘When I was the challenger, I went through hell trying to get him [Wilder] to man up to fight me, and he wouldn’t fight me, so I’m going to chase the world title,’ Whyte added.
Whyte is currently preparing for his rescheduled rematch against Alexander Povetkin (right)
‘It’s a good fight, a fight that I’m interested in, but he needs to dance to my tune. I’m sure the British people and the American fans would love to see me knock him out. It’s going to be war. I’m just there to knock him out.’
Ahead of his rematch with Povetkin, Whyte remarkably accused the Russian of not having coronavirus in an attempt to buy more time to train.
A new date of January 30 has been targeted for the fight after Povetkin pulled out of the clash set for November 21 following a positive Covid-19 test, which required hospital treatment.
Yet Whyte, who was knocked out by the Russian during their first fight in August, is doubtful about Povetkin’s health, sensationally telling Sky Sports last week: ‘I personally don’t think he’s got Covid.
Povetkin knocked out Whyte in their first fight in August but pulled out of November’s rematch
‘I think he just needed more time to get ready, because he took a lot of damage in the first fight.
‘After the first fight, he took a lot of time off. Even though I got stopped, I went straight back to training and I got straight back on it.’
However, Povetkin’s promoter Andrey Ryabinskiy has hit back at those claims and has revealed further details about Povetkin’s condition.
‘He had a rather difficult form of coronavirus, but he passed this crisis period, the doctors put him back on his feet,’ Ryabinskiy said.
‘Sasha is now feeling well; no complications have been identified. At the moment, his main task is to restore health and return to the necessary physical shape.
A new date of January 30 is set to be pencilled in for the rematch between Whyte and Povetkin
‘We hope Sasha will return to training in two to three weeks. But any physical activity should be coordinated with doctors, while they are careful in their forecasts and only say that it is necessary to monitor the situation and Sasha’s wellbeing.’
The Russian beat Whyte with a stunning one-punch knockout in their bout back in August, dashing The Body Snatcher’s hopes of a world title contest against Anthony Joshua.
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