Dillian Whyte: 'I'm the most underestimated boxer in the world'

There have been times recently when Dillian Whyte has railed against the situation in which the 31-year-old finds himself. Frozen out of a major world title challenge, Whyte calls heavyweight boxing “a joke”, after sitting on top of the World Boxing Council rankings for over 300 days while the merry-go-round involving Deontay Wilder, the WBC champion, and Tyson Fury has ensued.

However, that situation may change soon. The Brixton brawler set pulses racing in 2018 with three brilliant wins over Lucas Browne, Dereck Chisora and Joseph Parker, all at the O2 Arena. Whyte returns there next Saturday, where he meets unbeaten Oscar Rivas for the interim WBC title. The Colombian, 26-0 in a 10-year career, is a clever boxer with decent power and speed.

Wilder, meanwhile, is expected to fight again in September or October against Luiz Ortiz, and is being lined up for a rematch against Fury in February. Whyte must simply beat Rivas, play the waiting game, and be ready. He is ranked No 1 challenger by the WBC, and placed at No 3 by the World Boxing Organisation and World Boxing Association, but he may well look back on matters earlier in the year and lament not signing to fight Anthony Joshua at Wembley Stadium in April.