Dillian Whyte has defended fellow British heavyweight Daniel Dubois after his loss.
‘Dynamite’ suffered a heavy fifth-round knockout loss to Oleksandr Usyk in their rematch, repeating the result from their inaugural Poland bout.
Concerns have been raised over the pre-fight party organised by Daniel’s father, who Johnny Nelson described as ‘reckless’, which has led to increased scrutiny of Dubois.
Boxing fans on social media have claimed the fighter ‘quit’ when Usyk landed the final left hook, with the claim emboldened by Tony Bellew, much to Don Charles’ anger.
Dillian Whyte sends brutal response to boxing fans claiming Daniel Dubois ‘quit’
However, he has found support from Whyte, who is coming up against a big task of his own in the form of the young heavyweight sensation Moses Itauma.
When asked about the fight, the ‘Body Snatcher’ was quick to defend ‘DDD’ from the critiques he has faced post-Usyk fight.
Speaking to Seconds Out, he said: “Nah, I think boxing fans are very ungrateful, very sharp-minded, a few months ago, Daniel Dubois is the best thing since whatever.
“He did not have a bad performance, he got clocked, it’s boxing, people should be glad a young man has fought the guys he fought, done what he’s done.
“He’s fought good guys, lost, comeback, and still fought good guys… he came back in a tough fight.”
After losing to the three-time undisputed king, he jumped back in with a run of Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic, and Anthony Joshua, all ending in knockouts.
The latter was his most heralded performance because of the names, occasion, and manner of his perfectly timed right hand to end the fight in the fifth round.
Questioned on whether he quit, he gave a brutal message to fans who have been talking about the boxer.
Whyte said: “People should be more positive and more grateful instead of chatting rubbish. Let me punch you in the side of your jaw with a left hook like that and tell me if he quit or not.”
Moses Itauma should attack one key area against Dillian Whyte
There will be a clash of British heavyweight generations between Itauma and Whyte on August 16th in a test to see how good this 20-year-old prodigy is.
After scoring a brilliant knockout over Mike Balogun, he will hope to achieve another highlight-reel finish to add to his résumé.
Dillian will likely try to get in close and make it rough on the inside for the prospect, but this could play into the hands of his opponent if he copies the Jermaine Franklin body work approach.
According to CompuBox, in their contentious majority decision, Franklin outlanded the Londoner to the body by 23 punches, with a 27% overall accuracy.
Targeting the torso when the inside fighter looks to work his way in would be perfect for Itauma to exploit for a big finish up top.