Tyson Fury has weighed in on the upcoming heavyweight clash this weekend between Dillian Whyte and Jermaine Franklin – and believes Whyte could be in for a tricky night’s work.
Fury told Sporting News that, whilst Franklin is perhaps lacking in work rate compared to ‘The Gypsy King’ himself, he has the attributes to cause Whyte problems, provided he comes in with the game plan and output to match his ability.
“Jermaine’s a good fighter, but he’s like a lot of other American heavyweights in that he’s lazy. He works hard, he trains hard, he’s being pushed by his trainer and his nutritionist — they’re all pushing him to the brink. But if you unleash me in a gym, you don’t need to push me to work hard because I’m going to give you 250 percent every single time.”
“When Franklin opens up, he’s a very talented lad. He puts his punches in bunches, very quick, and he’s a strong man — about 6-foot-2 and 255 pounds. As soon as he came into camp with me, he was already doing eight rounds.”
“I don’t think it’s a mismatch, it’s just that Dillian Whyte is a good fighter. He’s a top-five, top-six-rated heavyweight, even though he has been in a lot of tough fights. Franklin is definitely the fresher fighter, so if he gets busy with the punches, puts a good work rate in, and moves his head, then I think it could be a difficult night for Dillian.”
Few are better place to analyse a Dillian Whyte fight than Fury, who dismantled ‘The Bodysnatcher’ in six rounds when the pair met earlier this year at Wembley Stadium.
The Franklin fight will be Whyte’s first time in the ring since his meeting with Fury, and the Brit will be looking to avoid any hiccups as he looks to secure another big fight in 2023.