Dillian Whyte’s chance at redemption against Alexander Povetkin has been put on hold after the Russian boxer tested positive for Covid-19.
Promoter Eddie Hearn announced the news on Twitter on Tuesday as he confirmed: ‘Unfortunately we got the news today that Alexander Povetkin is in hospital after testing positive for Covid-19.
‘The fight will now be rescheduled to a target date of January 30th, an announcement on our November 21st show will be made shortly.’
The rematch was scheduled to take place later this month after Whyte lost the first fight as he was knocked out in the fifth round despite putting in a strong performance up until then.
Speaking after the win, Povetkin admitted the KO punch was one of his best ever.
The Russian said: ‘I was watching his fights and I see that he was missing uppercuts from the left and from the right.
‘All my training I trained for those shots and it was definitely one of the best punches of my career.’
Whyte was oozing confidence ahead of the pair’s next fight too, stating: ‘As soon as I got out of the ring I was looking for confirmation that the fight would be on.
‘I can’t wait to get back in the ring and get back what is rightfully mine.’
With the rematch now on hold, Whyte will assess his options before deciding what he does next.
Hearn teased a potential bout with WBC world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, again tweeting out: “Dillian Whyte v Tyson Fury anyone?”
The Fury camp quickly hit back though and dismissed the suggestion, with his co-promoter Frank Warren stressing: ‘We are not in the business of bailing out Dillian Whyte.
‘At the time he was mandatory challenger to Tyson, and they kept banging on about it, but they stupidly put him with Povetkin and that’s it, he’s lost his chance.’
With that potential matchup now off the table, Dereck Chisora has sensationally stepped forward and offered to take up the fight.
On an Instagram Live with Hearn, Chisora shocked many viewers by asking if he could take the fight, just two and a half weeks on from his recent loss to Oleksandr Usyk.
Chisora asked: ‘Do you want to give me that fight? November 21st? You want to give it to me?’
Hearn admitted it was a possibility, potentially being the fastest pay-per-view turnaround in history.
However, no real conclusion was made and Chisora left Hearn with a clear message: ‘Think about it, let me know, and I will take it.’
The solution to Whyte vs Povetkin being postponed is currently unclear, but the British boxer certainly has plenty of options to choose from.
By Alistair Pollock
