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Whyte says Sky Sports has done a great job in creating an illusion around his opponent
DILLIAN WHYTE believes that Sky Sports has done a great job in creating an illusion around British heavyweight Anthony Joshua. But come December 12 at the London O2 Arena, he aims to expose the Olympian for what he really is.
Whyte, 27, told The Voice of Sport that he respects the attributes possessed by Joshua but is not particularly worried about the Watford fighter’s power and has no fear of taking on the 2012 Olympic gold medallist when the two meet up next month to do battle for the British and Commonwealth belts.
“I don’t watch Joshua’s power, I don’t think his power is anything formidable,” said Whyte.
“Joshua’s power is a reflection of what Sky [Sports] and Matchroom [Promotions] have been doing, which is getting him the right opponents at the right time, selecting guys that are over the hill and getting him guys that have good records but can’t fight so that it looks good on paper.
“What did I say about his last opponent, Gary Cornish? I said he would get knocked out in one round and the fight only went 90 seconds. Guys like Cornish will always come up short against Anthony Joshua because they look at Joshua’s physique and power and watch how Sky present him showing Anthony Joshua knocking people over and playing it over and over again, while telling everyone that he is the best fighter to come out of the UK.
“If you put something on often enough like the Go Compare advert for instance it’s only a matter of time before you start singing the tune. That’s what they are doing with Antony Joshua and after a while people start believing in the hype.”
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Whyte admitted that he wasn’t entirely pleased with his last victory against Brian Minto, but said the win secured his shot at the title he’s been eyeing up for a few years and that was all that mattered.
He also said he didn’t care much for the constant criticism he gets for his physique, claiming that some boxers today have lost their focus where preparing for a fight is concerned.
“I’ve prepared how I always prepare, trained hard but also trained smart,” Whyte enthused.
He added: “People can say what they want. Because I don’t look like a body builder people under estimate my cardio and fitness and say I can’t go the distance or I don’t look strong or explosive, but looks are deceiving.
“Nowadays boxers are looking more like body builders than boxers, everyone is watching a fighter’s physique and not what they can do, but that doesn’t faze me. I know what I can do, I know what I train to do and I know what I will do when the time calls for me to do it. I don’t need to starve myself to get down to 15 stone, what for? This isn’t a bikini contest.”