David Haye has shared his thoughts on Saturday’s Dillian Whyte vs. Moses Itauma fight.
The two heavyweights will collide in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia this weekend, in a battle that is set to have big implications for the banner division.
Itauma is unbeaten in his career with a record of 12-0, while Whyte is a former world title challenger looking to once again get back in the mix with the elite heavyweights.
Another man that was once seen as a top heavyweight was Haye, who held the WBA strap from 2009 to 2011.
Haye has been speaking to The Stomping Ground about this weekend’s battle, starting by stating the case for Whyte.
“I think people are underestimating the experience of Dillian Whyte. He’s been in the game for a long time. Going by how his physical condition looks compared to his prior two fights, he looks like he’s paid the price in training and not had any unnecessary calories and he’s done the work. He’s put himself in a position where he can roll back the years. So don’t sleep on Dillian.
“When he’s on his game he’s a problem for everybody, particularly someone who has never swam in those deep waters before, someone who has never mixed it at that elite world level, even though with Dillian most people wouldn’t consider him right now elite because of his last two performances, although he won he didn’t look like the old Dillian.
“That might have worked out in his favour, maybe if he would have looked great this fight wouldn’t have presented itself.”
Haye then presented the argument for Itauma.
“It’s either going to be perfect for Dillian or absolutely terrible because the other way I see it is Moses Itauma’s speed and power. If you look at his last five fights he’s knocked them all out in one or two rounds.
“Explosive, super sharp, fit, young, fresh, zero miles on the clock, brand new out the showroom, the right size, the right weight, all the boxes are ticked. Can Whyte avoid the early onslaught? Is he fresh enough to stay out of the way? Even if he does get clipped and might get dropped, can he hold it together until Moses runs out of steam?
“It’s unknown whether Moses can fight at that pace for 12 rounds. It’s all unknown, but we do know Dillian. We know him very well and his strength is his resilience. His will to win. His willing to go through whatever he has to go through to land that big left hook.”
Eventually, Haye gave his prediction for the fight.
“I think it’s either Itauma in the first four rounds or Dillian Whyte on points. If Itauma can’t get him out of there early it means he’s tried and failed to zap him and then he’s in the unknown.
“Moses hasn’t had anybody bring the intensity that a Dillian Whyte brings. He hasn’t experienced that yet. I think this is one of the most intriguing heavyweight fights for a long time.”
Haye isn’t the only former world heavyweight champion to make his prediction, with Tyson Fury also offering his thoughts.
