Ben Whittaker and Conor Wallace had to be separated by security on Thursday after a staredown at their penultimate face-off turned physical. Eddie Hearn also used the press conference to shut down talk that Whittaker is nearing free agency.
The pair meet Saturday, October 3 at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham in an IBF light heavyweight final eliminator, with the winner in line for a shot at unified WBA, IBF and WBO champion Dmitry Bivol. Matchroom lists Whittaker at 12-0-1 and Wallace at 17-1. The card streams on DAZN.
At the Thursday press conference, Whittaker kept telling Wallace he was not on his level. Wallace and coach Greg Eadie pointed to their 2024 upset of Jerome Pampellone. Whittaker, who goes by The Surgeon, took that as a comparison to a fighter he says he already beat in the amateurs. The two went nose to nose. Whittaker wagged a finger in Wallace’s face, then started prodding his chest until security stepped in.
Speaking to the Matchroom Boxing broadcast right after, Whittaker said: “I was just letting him know I ain’t no Pampellone. They kept going on about Pampellone; I beat him in the amateurs with one arm. If that is what they are banking on as a massive win, then fair play to them.”
“He’s game, he’s coming to change his life, he’s ranked above me on paper, but I’m better in every department,” Whittaker said. “I have that confidence that is real. It’s all well and good talking, being flashy, hopping on one leg, but sometimes it’s not real. You can see it’s real now.”
Whittaker credited trainer Andy Lee for not blowing smoke, and said overlooking Wallace would kill the world-title path. “I’m set on Saturday. Nothing will go wrong, but if it did, I can’t go where I want to go: a world title fight. If I get through this, the world is my oyster.”
Two years left on the Matchroom deal
Hearn, asked about Whittaker hinting at free agency and flirting with Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing, said Whittaker is still tied to Matchroom. “He’s not even 1 year into a 3-year deal,” Hearn said, as reported by The Fight Wire. “But what he does do is create great headlines.”
That leaves about two years on the current contract. Hearn also laughed off the idea White would be at Saturday’s show, saying White did not even attend the Anthony Joshua-Tyson Fury presser.
BoxingWire previewed the IBF light heavyweight final eliminator earlier this week. A public weigh-in is set for Friday at The Grand Hotel in Birmingham.
