On June 25, British heavyweight Dillian Whyte (16-1, 13 KOs) will face French boxer Cyril Leonet (18-8-2, 3 KOs) on the undercard of the Anthony Joshua vs. Dominic Breazeale bout at the O2 Arena London.
Whyte, who got knocked out by Joshua in his previous fight, is looking for a rematch against the new IBF champion ever since. His return to ring was hampered due to a shoulder injury he suffered against Joshua that lasted only 7 rounds.
The former WBC Silver International heavyweight champion and kickboxing champion has chosen a relatively tough opponent considering he is making a comeback from shoulder surgery.
Although, the record of Cyril is not that impressive but he is a fighter who won’t go down easily. The 32-year-old is ranked 67 on boxrec and won only 50% of his bouts. Even though boxing fans were expecting a better opponent but this was the best they could find on short four weeks’ notice. The fight is scheduled for 6 rounds only so we can expect an action packed fight.
If “The Villain” passes this test then his next fight will be against a much tougher opponent Dereck Chisora in December for the British title.
The boxing fans compare the Jamaican born fighter with Chisora as a younger, stronger and improved version of him. If that fight happens many expect him to finish Chisora within 4 rounds.
Whyte said: “I can beat him (Joshua), I popped my shoulder with one big hit. I’ve had so much rehab but I’m back. The dream for me is to win the world title. I want a re-match. If there’s another route I would take it, but I enjoy fighting Joshua.”
If Whyte can achieve impressive wins against Leonet and Chisora then the rematch he’s been dreaming of might just happen. Although, Joshua have bigger plans than to defend his title against the man he has already beaten as he wants to unify the heavyweight division by beating bigger targets Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder.
Talking about his next opponent Whyte said: “Cyril Leonet is a good operator, he hasn’t lost in six or seven years. I didn’t want to come back to an easy fight. Eddie Hearn asked if I was sure after my shoulder injury, but it’s a big card so I want to come back to a hard fight.”
I believe he has been provided the wrong stats because the records show that Leonet has lost repeatedly during past few years.
