‘The Body Snatcher’ was due to make his UK return next month, but heavyweight star Joyce is now on the look out for a last minute replacement
Dillian Whyte has been forced to pull out of his upcoming showdown with heavyweight rival Joe Joyce due to injury.
The pair were due to go head-to-head in an all-British showdown on April 5 in Manchester. However, just weeks before the two stars are due to go head-to-head, ‘The Body Snatcher’ has pulled out of the clash due to an inflamed finger.
According to The Sun, Joyce is still scheduled to headline on the bill – which also features a blockbuster clash between Lawrence Okolie and Richard Riakporhe. With promoters now trying to find a late replacement, a source told the outlet: “It’s gutting for Joe.
“He has trained – as usual – incredibly hard for this and Dillian was an ideal opponent. If there is one thing British boxing fans know about Joe, it’s that he will fight anyone and, thankfully, there are lots of good heavyweights out there. Joe has no interest in dropping below world level, so Filip Hrgovic, Jarrell Miller, the Daniel Dubois rematch, Joe will take on anyone.”
The bout was set to mark Whyte’s first fight in the United Kingdom in nearly three years. His last outing on the UK shores was a win over Jermaine Franklin back in November 2022. He was due to fight Anthony Joshua at The O2 arena back in 2023, but “adverse analytical finding” in a pre-fight drugs test on Whyte’s side cancelled their rematch.
However, last year, an investigation confirmed that the positive drugs test was caused by a contaminated supplement. The 36-year-old returned to the ring last March defeating Christian Hammer. His last outing came back in December when he scured yet another win, this time beating Ebenezer Tetteh in Gibraltar.
As for Joyce, the 39-year-old was enjoying a glittering run of form and announced himself on the world stage back in 2022 after knocking out Joseph Parker in Manchester. That said, he then suffered two agonising defeats to Zhilei Zhang in 2023. The ‘Juggernaut’ did, however, return to the win column last March against Kash Ali.
The win seemingly booked himself an epic showdown with Derek Chisora at The O2. He was eventually taken the distance by ‘Del Boy’ before suffering a unanimous decision defeat in London last July. Joyce was hoping to rebuild his career against Whyte following multiple setbacks over the last few years.
