Tyson Fury vs Dillian Whyte is finally a go and ‘The Gypsy King’ is a hot favorite in the betting odds to retain his world heavyweight titles.
The 33-year-old Fury will put his WBC, Ring magazine and lineal belts on the line in a showdown between two Brits in London, England.
Whyte finally signed his contract for the bout just before the deadline expired, but he has done little to promote the fight so far. He was a no-show at the opening press conference and at the open workout four days before the bout in London. He has though done some media interviews in the last few days.
Now the question is will he show up for the weigh-in and fight? We expect the answer to be yes, he is guaranteed a career payday of more than $8million remember, and that would rise to $12million if he beats Fury.
Fury vs Whyte odds
Fury (31-0-1), who is still unbeaten as a professional and is coming off that 11th-round KO of Deontay Wilder in their epic trilogy fight last October, is a strong favorite right now.
FanDuel makes the two-time heavyweight king a -490 shot (bet $490 to win $100) to retain his belts, while Whyte (28-2) is currently available at +475 (bet $100 to win $475) with SugarHouse and Unibet. The Draw is +2500.
Fury vs Whyte Picks
Our boxing expert has previewed the big showdown in Wembley Stadium, London, England.
He likes Fury to force a mid-round stoppage and you can read his full guide with best bests here.
Fury vs Whyte Weights
The weighin took place Friday in London, and there were surprises.
Fury came in at 264lbs (18st 12lbs) – that is 13lbs less than for his last fight, that KO of Deontay Wilder in their trilogy fight last October.
Whyte meanwhile tipped the scales at 253lbs (18st 1lbs) – that is 6lbs heavier than for his last fight, a demolition of Alexander Povetkin in March 2021.
How much will Fury and Whyte earn?
Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotion, in conjunction with Bob Arum’s Top Rank, smashed the existing record by bidding more than $41million for the fights to promote the bout.
Fury is guaranteed more than $29million with the WBC enforcing an 80-20 split, while Whyte is in line for a career-high payday of more than $8million. The remaining $4.1million will go to the winner of the bout.
Date and start time for Fury vs Whyte
Fury vs Whyte will take place in Wembley Stadium in London, England on Saturday April 23, with a start time of between 1700 and 1800 Eastern Time (1400 to 1500 Pacific). Wembley has a capacity of 94,000 for major boxing shows and it is expected to be full for Fury’s first fight on home soil since 2018. All tickets are sold.
TV channel & live stream
Fury is part way through a $110million contract with ‘Worldwide Leader’ ESPN, and the network will have U.S. streaming rights for the bout. It will be a pay-per-view showdown, and the price has now been confirmed at $69.99. Seems pretty punchy for a couple of Brits fighting at 5pm Eastern on a Saturday, no?
What does this mean for the heavyweight division?
Boxing’s marquee weight class right now has two current world champions – Fury and Ukrainian maestro Oleksandr Usyk.
Fury holds the WBC, Ring magazine and lineal titles after that successful defense vs Wilder. Usyk meanwhile is IBF, WBA and WBO king after dethroning Anthony Joshua last September.
With Fury vs Whyte tabbed for April, and Usyk vs Joshua 2 apparently set to take place in May, we again are at the semifinal stage in a mini tournament to find a new undisputed heavyweight champion.
Don’t hold your breath though, the last time boxing had an undisputed heavyweight king was Lennox Lewis back in 1999. They don’t come around often – that’s boxing politics for you.
Tyson Fury Record
Fury has a pro ledger which is just about perfect – it stands currently at 31-0-1. A total of 22 of those wins have come inside distance and the only blemish was a draw with Deontay Wilder in Los Angeles in 2018.
‘Gypsy King’, now 33 years old, is at the peak of his heavyweight powers as the WBC, Ring magazine and lineal champion. He puts all of those titles on the line vs Whyte on April 23.
The biggest wins on Fury’s resume are undoubtedly the night he took the titles from Wladimir Klitschko in Germany in 2015, and then the two wins over Wilder in 2020 and 2021. Both times vs Wilder he got off the floor twice to win.
Fury’s style is a total one-off – he blends huge size with freakish athletic ability for a man who stands 6ft 9ins tall and weighed 277lbs for that trilogy fight vs Wilder in October 2021. He also has incredible powers of recovery (see those knockdowns by Wilder) and seems to get stronger in size despite not being the normal sculpted boxer body.
Dillian Whyte Record
‘The Body Snatcher’, from London in England, has a 28-2 record at pro level, with the losses coming in elite company vs Anthony Joshua and Alexander Povetkin. Some 19 of his wins have come inside distance.
As well as avenging that loss to Povetkin with a rematch victory in his last bout, Whyte has fought some pretty good names in recent years.
He boasts wins over former heavyweight champ Joseph Parker, the talented Oscar Rivas and the vastly experienced Robert Helenius and Dereck Chisora, among others.
Like we said people, ESPN has the call but it will set you back a cool $69.99.
Not as a professional no – he owns an unbeaten resume at 31-0-1. The only blemish is that December 2018 draw with Deontay Wilder in Los Angeles.
Pretty high-level opposition both times – Whyte has lost twice in a 30-fight pro career so far (he’s 28-2 right now). His losses came to future heavyweight king Anthony Joshua and Russian star Alexander Povetkin. Both inside distance.
Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions (UK) and Bob Arum’s Top Rank (U.S.) co-promote ‘The Gypsy King’.
Hearn promotes Whyte, but he lost the purse bid to stage this fight. Warren remember bid a record $41million and change. Way above the previous record. So Matchroom Eddie is on the outside looking in for this one.
Long story. He wasn’t happy with his split of the purse (20%) and lobbied for more. Also he doesn’t appear to be happy with the number of tickets his camp are getting for fight night at Wembley Stadium.