Saturday night’s high-profile all-British heavyweight clash against Tyson Fury at Wembley Stadium was the end of a long journey for Dillian Whyte.
‘The Body Snatcher’ had waited three eventful years for a shot at world title glory, ever since climbing off the canvas to edge Oscar Rivas and claim WBC interim status in the summer of 2019.
Later reinstated after being cleared of doping by UKAD, he had to get past Mariusz Wach, avenge his shock 2020 defeat by Alexander Povetkin in a Gibraltar rematch and put ongoing legal wrangles with the WBC to one side to finally realise his long-held ambition of fighting for world title honours.
The occasion was ultimately a huge disappointment for Whyte, who was firmly second-best through five rounds against Fury - fighting on home soil for the first time since 2018 - in front of 94,000 fans before being stopped by a brutal right uppercut.
So what next for the 34-year-old?
Retirement
Few could blame Whyte if he decided now was the opportune time to step away from the ring.
In reality, the former kickboxing champion and MMA fighter has achieved more than he ever likely imagined possible in the fight game, competing in memorable battles against the likes of Fury, Joshua, Povetkin, Derek Chisora and Joseph Parker, while making some serious money along the way.
There would be absolutely no shame whatsoever in calling it quits after an impressive career, but Whyte seems to be intent on carrying on after feeling that he wasn’t outclassed at Wembley - a view not shared by many who witnessed Saturday night’s one-sided main event.
“Had I got beaten up for four or five rounds and completely outclassed, then I’d have been like yeah, it’s time to call it a day. But I wasn’t outclassed,” he told Sky Sports.
Tyson Fury rematch
Whyte made headlines on Monday by stating his desire for a rematch against Fury, claiming the knockout was illegal as he hit his head on the canvas as a result of the push that followed the champion’s crushing final uppercut.
But let’s be honest - there is next to no chance of that becoming a reality next.
Fury suggested once again that he will retire on top after vanquishing Whyte, though even wife Paris seemed unconvinced that another U-turn wasn’t swiftly forthcoming.
If the self-proclaimed ‘Gypsy King’ does step into the ring again, it will surely be only in a lucrative showdown for all the heavyweight marbles against either Oleksandr Usyk or Anthony Joshua, who are due to meet again - likely in Saudi Arabia - on July 23.
The battle to crown the first undisputed champion of boxing’s blue-riband division since Lennox Lewis would be worth more than £100million to Fury. He has no reason whatsoever to consider any other fight at this stage - why would he?
Fury’s co-promoter Frank Warren unsurprisingly told talkSPORT on Tuesday that there was “zero chance” of a rematch for Whyte.
“When I was younger I was asking to take Julia Roberts out, it never happened,” he joked. “Where do you wanna go with it? The only unsatisfactory thing for him was the fact he got stopped, he got knocked out and that is the end of it. Zero, zero chance of a rematch.
“You have to fight your way back into contention and good luck to you doing that. There is some good domestic fights there for him to have like a Daniel Dubois or a Joe Joyce next because they are good yard sticks to see how good these guys are.”
Who else could Whyte face next?
Whyte’s status as a free agent offers a high degree of freedom, but could he now be tempted to realign himself again with one single promoter? If so, then his choice on that front would obviously have a huge say on who he meets next.
Discussing those options laid out by Warren, Dubois is scheduled to face American Trevor Bryan for the WBA regular belt at a location yet to be determined on June 11, while Joyce is set to meet Joseph Parker in an intruiging clash in July.
Whyte could feasibly wait to face the winner of one of those bouts, though it’s worth noting he already beat Parker in a gruelling battle at the O2 Arena in 2018.
One name that will surely come to the fore again is Deontay Wilder, with WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman stating his belief that the former heavyweight champion will return to the ring this year having not fought since his epic defeat in a trilogy clash with Fury in October.
Whyte and Wilder have exchanged plenty of barbs in the past, while there would still be no shortage of interest in seeing two huge punchers slug it out in an explosive contest. But does Wilder represent too big of a short-term risk for Whyte, who believes it will only take one quick win to return to world title contention?
And how about Joshua? The old amateur foes clashed in a hectic, memorable affair in December 2015, with Joshua securing a dramatic seventh-round stoppage. The rivalry has not diminished since, so could we potentially see a rematch if AJ is beaten again by Usyk in July?
Then there is the likes of Andy Ruiz Jr and Luis Ortiz, who are scheduled to clash in Mexico later this summer, while Otto Wallin could still be a potential option.
Whyte had been due to face the Swede who gave Fury trouble in Las Vegas in 2019, before pulling out of a scheduled October fight with a shoulder injury and then turning attentions to Fury.
Could he now be the perfect level of opponent for Whyte to get back to winning ways and catapult himself back up the heavyweight ladder?
