Dillian Whyte no-show gives Tyson Fury ‘much more confidence’ for title fight

Whyte remained in Portugal rather than fly to London for a press conference

Tyson Fury, pictured, will defend his WBC heavyweight title next month against Dillian Whyte (PA Wire)

Tyson Fury claimed he feels even more emboldened by Dillian Whyte swerving the press conference that heralded their much-anticipated world heavyweight title fight on 23 April at Wembley Stadium.

Whyte is the mandatory challenger to WBC champion Fury but is entitled to just 20 per cent of the record 41million US dollars (£30million) purse bid won by his rival’s co-promoter Frank Warren a couple of months ago.

It was speculated that Whyte was seeking to renegotiate his share of the split before he signed his contract hours before the deadline last week, and the Londoner did not show up to a media event to promote the fight on Tuesday.

Whyte is currently preparing for his first world title opportunity in Portugal and, according to Warren, rejected the offer of a private jet to come head-to-head with Fury, who poured scorn on his British rival’s no-show.

“He’s getting the biggest payday of his life,” Fury said. “He should be here kissing my feet and washing my feet.

“Before I was like ‘you know what, when I say stuff about Dillian Whyte he always fires back and he gets upset and causes a bit of a ruckus’, now it’s like ‘say what you want about the guy’.

“It’s given me that much more confidence, it’s unbelievable. He’s definitely shown the white flag in my estimation. He doesn’t want to go face to face with me because he’ll see that fire in my eyes and he’ll think ‘I’m getting smashed to bits’.”

I'm not saying Dillian Whyte's not capable of winning a fight because he's won nearly 30 fights but there's a gulf in class here

Tyson Fury

Warren alleged Whyte is getting paid more than his contemporaries did when they first fought for a world title.

“I’ve never heard of a fighter not showing up to a press conference,” Warren said.

“He’s getting eight times more than Tyson got to fight (Wladimir) Klitschko, he’s getting more than (Anthony) Joshua got paid to fight (Charles) Martin, he’s getting more than (Oleksandr) Usyk got to fight Joshua.

“Champions bank on themselves to win, that’s what they do to become the king. You win the title, you get the money.

“It’s just not right. We are where we are but Dillian Whyte is in Portugal. He should be here. It’s disgraceful that he’s not here, it’s not professional.”

Frank Warren, left, won the purse bids for this fight (John Walton/PA) (PA Wire)

While Whyte has won 28 of his 30 contests, Fury remains unbeaten as a professional with 31 victories and one draw from his 32 fights and he believes he is a cut above his next opponent.

Fury, preparing to fight for the first time on British soil in nearly four years, added: “He’s no different to many of the other opponents I’ve fought in my career. They’re all dangerous, they’ve all got a puncher’s chance.

“I always put a lot of pressure on myself and if I can’t look like Muhammad Ali boxing this guy then I’m in the wrong position and I’m not as good as I think I am. I will chop him to bits, not a problem.

“You’re going to see a boxing masterclass, you’ll see the difference in levels, you’re going to see the Ferrari racing the Vauxhall Corsa in a race. There’s levels to this game.

“I’m not saying Dillian Whyte’s not capable of winning a fight because he’s won nearly 30 fights but there’s a gulf in class here. If I’m daft enough to get knocked out by him then I don’t deserve to be world heavyweight champion.”