"I didn't think I'd be alive past 20" - Dillian Whyte on fighting Tyson Fury
Dillian Whyte will challenge Tyson Fury for the WBC Heavyweight Championship on April 23rd. The build-up to the fight has been relatively quiet, as Whyte announced a media blackout early on and then skipped the official press conference.
Last week, Whyte ended the blackout and announced that he is ready for the fight. In an interview with BT Sport, Whyte spoke for nearly half an hour about the upcoming bout and his preparations for it.
In the interview, Whyte said:
"I didn't think I'd be alive past twenty anyway... I'd be in prison doing charges for some murders or something crazy... that's what I'm saying I didn't think I'd be alive. That's the lifestyle, not that I wanted to live, but the life that was forced onto me because of unfortunate circumstances, the way I was brought up, the things I was exposed to."
.@DillianWhyte is a survivor.
"I learnt to be tough. I learnt to be resilient. I never thought I'd be here."
An incredible journey 👏
#FuryWhyte
Check out the full interview with Dillian Whyte here:
Tyson Fury and Dillian Whyte have history
In his interview with Steve Bunce for BT Sport, Whyte also talked about his history with Fury, who he trained with in the past:
"His uncle, Peter Fury, is a very smart man... he knew, to build Tyson up to that level, he needed good strong guys, resiliant guys, tough guys... I was one of the guys they brought in to help him. I spent a lot of time with him... I was cool with the guy, never had no beef with him."
Whyte said that things between him and Fury eventually got heated because of Fury's anger. When he was asked if he regrets not participating in the build-up or the press conference, Whyte said:
"I don't regret anything, really... remember, Tyson Fury didn't show up to the Wladimir Klitschko press conference. Everyone's giving me stick but Tyson Fury didn't actually turn up to the Wladimir Klitschko press conference."
Whyte is doing the fight on his own terms, he said, and is simply not bending to Fury's demands.
🗣️ "The tickets are selling because he's fighting me."
Dillian Whyte has spoken to BBC Sport ahead of his all-British mega fight with Tyson Fury for the WBC title on Saturday.
#BBCBoxing