Frank Warren has taken a jab at fellow boxing promoter Eddie Hearn for his handling of Dillian Whyte’s career after the heavyweight took legal action against the WBC this week.
Whyte, 32, is the mandatory challenger to WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury – who is promoted by Warren – but it was announced last week that a two-fight deal had been agreed for 2021 between the Gypsy King and Anthony Joshua – who, like Whyte, is represented by Hearn.
Before those bouts, Fury is set to face Deontay Wilder for a third time, meaning Whyte’s involvement in the title picture is not as clear cut as his mandatory challenger status suggests it should be.
As such, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman confirmed to Sky Sports this week that Whyte had taken legal action as concerns the date of his title fight, leading Warren to criticise Hearn’s management of the situation.
“You can see why [Whyte] is upset,” Warren wrote on Twitter. “He doesn’t feel he’s been looked after.
“If Dillian was with me, he would have fought for a world title by now. I had Tyson Fury fighting for a world title within 6 months of signing him.
“We kept him nice and active and then got him the Wilder fight.”
Fury’s US promoter Bob Arum admitted he plans to speak to the WBC about delaying or scrapping Whyte’s mandatory title shot altogether.
“We will be talking to the organisations to eliminate mandatories, or to postpone them all for at least one year,” the Top Rank CEO and founder told Sky Sports.
