Ring walks at 8.45pm next Saturday
Thursday 5 December 2019 21:41, UK
Dillian Whyte says only Anthony Joshua truly knows if he can amend issues that led to the Andy Ruiz Jr loss, but hopes victory can set up a bumper British battle.
Sky customers: Ruiz Jr vs Joshua 2
Non Sky customers: Ruiz Jr vs Joshua 2
Joshua can regain his world heavyweight titles in a spectacular second fight with Ruiz Jr in Saudi Arabia next Saturday night, live on Sky Sports Box Office, and Whyte returns to action against Mariusz Wach on the undercard.
After a shock stoppage loss in June, Joshua has undergone another stringent training camp in a bid to iron out any deficiencies that were ruthlessly exploited by Ruiz Jr, although Whyte insists his former opponent will realise whether he is genuinely ready for an immediate return fight.
Whyte told Sky Sports: "It's heavyweight boxing, what can I say? I can say 'Hey, he's going to win and this and whatever,' I don't know. I hope he wins.
"You never know, sometimes fighters lose, it makes them stronger. Sometimes fighters lose, it makes them weaker.
"When I lost, it made me stronger, and then you see other guys, it softens them, makes them weaker.
"I don't know what's in his mind, what's going on in camp. There's lots of things that no one knows. Only he truly knows. I hope he wins, I want him to win, but whether he wins or not, it's a different thing."
Joshua was urged to make changes to his muscular physique in the aftermath of defeat, but Whyte has warned him not to nullify his naturally powerful assets.
His main strength is being big and strong and powerful and being in better physical condition than most guys he's fought.
He said: "I just hope Joshua doesn't listen too much to stuff people are saying about he needs to lose weight. 'Listen to this, he needs to change this,' because sometimes when you take too much negativity on board, it can take you away from your main strengths.
"His main strength is being big and strong and powerful and being in better physical condition than most guys he's fought. At his heaviest, at his most powerful, he hit Andy Ruiz with some big punches and couldn't put him away, so hopefully him losing weight and coming down doesn't affect him."
Whyte has battled his way into world title contention with 10 straight wins since his sole defeat at the hands of Joshua back in 2015 and wants to share the ring with him again, regardless of the result next weekend.
Asked if a Joshua rematch can happen, Whyte said: "I hope it does. Everything is just hope, hope at the minute.
"I don't know where he is in his life. Boxing is a hard, dangerous game. Some people do it for a while, they get to a certain place, then they just think, 'You know what, I'm going to chill out now.'
"Win, lose or draw, I would still like to rematch him. Even if he loses his next 10 fights, I would still like to rematch him."
