Dillian Whyte says he was ‘bossing’ his heavyweight clash with Alexander Povetkin before suffering a shock knockout defeat.
The 32-year-old appeared on the verge of victory after flooring Povetkin, 41, twice in the fourth round, but was then caught by a brutal uppercut in the fifth and could not recover.
Whyte was set to fight either Tyson Fury or Deontay Wilder had he beaten Povetkin but he intends to revive his career in a rematch against the Russian later in the year.
Speaking to Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn on Instagram, Whyte said: ‘Can we get the rematch in December?
😮 STUNNING VICTORY 😮
Dillian Whyte knocked out cold by Alexander Povetkin
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) August 22, 2020
‘Okay cool. I’m good, I’m good, it’s one of them things where he just landed.
‘I was bossing it. It is what it is. Rematch, it’s all good. That’s what heavyweight boxing is about.’
Whyte made a superb start to the fight but was rocked by Povetkin’s brutal uppercut and succumbed to the second defeat of his professional career.
Former middleweight world champion Andy Lee told BBC Radio 5 Live: ‘Whyte will be feeling disbelief, it’s the strangest thing when you’ve been knocked unconscious, its a crazy out of body experience, he’ll be asking people what happened.
‘He will be kicking himself, that’s a devastating knockout. He was so close to a world title for so long.
‘It’s a tragedy he was a contender for 1,000 days but he has rolled the dice just one too many times.
‘Whyte was winning the fight but it was a beautiful set-up by Povetkin. Whyte was braced for the body shot and was unprepared for the left hook Povetkin threw.
‘I am in shock. That is a sensational upset. That’s heavyweight boxing where one punch can change it all.’
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