Dillian Whyte has had his say on Anthony Joshua’s post fight antics in Jeddah after losing his rematch to Oleksandr Usyk – and believes his countryman should have shown more self-control.
Speaking to IFL TV, Whyte stated he believed that the pressure Joshua was under proved too much for him on the night and that it all spilled over after the decision was announced.
“He showed signs after the fight that he couldn’t deal with the pressure and stress.
No one wants to lose, no one wants to deal with defeats but life is full of ups and downs. You’ve got to be able to deal with the ups and the downs.
You can’t just start crying and losing control because you lost.”
Joshua came under heavy criticism for his post-fight speech, with some critics even describing it as a ‘meltdown.’
On Joshua’s performance in Jeddah, Whyte said:
“It is what it is, he tried his best but obviously Usyk was better than him on the night.
It wasn’t a hard fight physically but it was a hard fight mentally for him.”
Recent quotes would indicate that Whyte, who lost a back-and-forth fight to Joshua back in 2015, is being considered as a future opponent for AJ in 2023, with promoter Eddie Hearn saying the rematch is “100%” a fight that Joshua wants.
Both men are coming off losses, with Whyte having been out of the ring since his stoppage defeat to Tyson Fury at Wembley in April. “The Bodysnatcher,” however has been linked with a promotional deal with Sky, which would make a rematch with Joshua less likely if signed.
Whyte was speaking at the Liam Smith vs Hassan Mwakinyo show at the M+S Bank Arena in Liverpool.