Dillian Whyte claims Andy Ruiz Jr turned down $5 million offer

Heavyweight contender Dillian Whyte sat down with Eddie Hearn and Sky Sports’ Adam Smith yesterday for an update on his status, some thoughts on his divisional rivals, and a potential crack at UFC glory.

Whyte (27-1, 18 KO), looking a fair bit fitter than in his December decision over Mariusz Wach, spoke highly of Alexander Povetkin, calling him the most “technically sound” opponent of his career. The two were set to fight in Manchester on May 2 before Britain, like everywhere else in the world besides Nicaragua, put the kibosh on boxing. The fight has a tentative and hopeful date of July 4.

Whyte was more dismissive of Andy Ruiz Jr, whom Whyte claims turned down a $5,000,000 offer to fight him in the States, and criticized rival Anthony Joshua for pursuing a fight with Luis Ortiz.

He also asserted that former cruiserweight king Oleksandr Usyk would never become a world heavyweight champion.

Because of Whyte’s and Povetkin’s shared kickboxing backgrounds, Hearn jokingly suggested that their fight feature four rounds of kickboxing, then pivoted to selling “The Body Snatcher” on a UFC run. Whyte appeared open to the idea, but admitted he’d need a six-month training camp to get used to the rigors of MMA.

Whyte is still technically the mandatory challenger for Tyson Fury’s WBC belt, guaranteed a crack at the title early next year. There’s currently no word on how Fury’s COVID-delayed rematch with Deontay Wilder will affect that.