Winner of Whyte-Rivas to become WBC mandatory challenger?

[Enlightened-One]

Eddie Hearn told iFL TV late last night that the WBC have agreed to make the winner of the Whyte-Rivas fight the mandatory challenger for their world heavyweight title, with the Matchroom boss alleging that they'd be facing the victor of the Wilder-Ortiz bout next (assuming it doesn’t get cancelled and replaced with Wilder-Fury), without the champion being allowed to participate in any interim voluntary defences.

We’ve heard stuff like this before from Eddie Hearn and it has previously failed to come to fruition, but I really do hope that this time his words are 100% true.

At this point in time, this is merely a rumour, but I think this may end up becoming reality.

Thoughts?

[Finkel]

Eddie Hearn told iFL TV late last night that the WBC have agreed to make the winner of the Whyte-Rivas fight the mandatory challenger for their world heavyweight title, with the Matchroom boss alleging that they'd be facing the victor of the Wilder-Ortiz bout next (assuming it doesn’t get cancelled and replaced with Wilder-Fury), without the champion being allowed to participate in any interim voluntary defences.

We’ve heard stuff like this before from Eddie Hearn and it has previously failed to come to fruition, but I really do hope that this time his words are 100% true.

At this point in time, this is merely a rumour, but I think this may end up becoming reality.

Thoughts?

Good. As it should be.

[leejonesjnr]

If Whyte wins I believe that Rivas will be made mandatory.
It’s a shocker the way Whyte has been messed around.

[Evander]

What did Rivas do between 2016 and 2017, he had over a year off.

[Enlightened-One]

What did Rivas do between 2016 and 2017, he had over a year off.

Oscar Rivas had eye issues that resulted in the cancelletion of the Gerald Washington and Amir Mansour fights

[SportsRatings]

What did Rivas do between 2016 and 2017, he had over a year off.

He also had visa issues that cancelled some fights

[Onetimeonly]

I'd be disappointed at wilder facing the winner instead of fury.

[Enlightened-One]

I'd be disappointed at wilder facing the winner instead of fury.

I enjoyed the Wilder-Fury fight and would love to see the replay, but if Whyte overcomes the highly-rated Rivas, then it would be wrong to force Dillian to wait behind Tyson for his well overdue shot at ‘The Bronze Bomber’.

You could easily argue Dillian Whyte has been entitled to his world title shot since September 2017, because the only two men rated above him at the time in the WBC’s rankings should never have been given opportunities to face Wilder before the Brit did:

• Bermane Stiverne tested positive for banned substances in November 2016 and missed a PED drug test in July 2017, which should have led to him receiving a ban. However, this didn’t prevent the WBC from naming Stiverne as their mandatory challenger (without needing to engage in a final eliminator), which enabled the Wilder rematch in November 2017. The Haitian had previously fought only once since his first lop-sided 120-107 loss to Wilder two years earlier, which was a controversial and lacklustre victory over the journeyman Derric Rossy.

• Luis Ortiz tested positive for banned substances in October 2014 and again in September 2017, with the second test failure resulting in the postponement of his fight against Deontay Wilder. However, his bout with ‘The Bronze Bomber’ ended up only being delayed by six months and Ortiz will has been granted a second shot at the American, despite only beating the likes of Cojanu, Kauffman and Hammer since his first loss.

The day prior to Wilder’s 3rd November 2017’s mismatch against Stiverne, the WBC ordered a final eliminator between Eric Molina and Dominic Breazeale, who they rated 12th and 6th respectively, despite both men rated below Dillian Whyte, who was their leading contender.

By the time Deontay Wilder has competed in the Luis Ortiz rematch, Dillian Whyte would only be six days shy of reaching the 700-day landmark for being the WBC’s highest-ranked title challenger.

Deontay Wilder only competes twice per annum and if you’d prefer Tyson Fury to jump to the front of the queue, then you’re essentially claiming that Dillian Whyte should be made to wait another year, which is simply absurd, but will probably happen anyway!

[Onetimeonly]

I'm going to need you to cut 1000 words of that novel if you expect me to read it. Thanks in advance.

[candyslim]

Yeah why bother to fight a lawsuit when ...

AAA) Whyte is only a slight favourite to beat Rivas and could lose anyway.

BBB) Deontay has just discharged his mandatory obligation and won't be called upon to fight a mandatory again until 2021 at the earliest - unless of course Al decides it suits his purpose to get Sulaiman to call it 'early'.

CCC) For a man of unspectacular talents, Whyte is extremely ambitious in his choice of opponents and he's almost certain to come unglued before Al has to concern himself with Wilder having to meet the challenge.

So to summarize : Dillian Whyte may become mandatory for Wilder's belt but there is a world of difference between getting the nomination and challenging for the belt. In short ...

Yeah I know it could be Rivas but I'll wait to see how he gets on before considering that eventuality.

[SenorPipino]

Actually Whyte is a pretty solid -550 favorite over Rivas.

Simply because he's the bigger name and Rivas remains somewhat of an unknown.

Wouldn't surprise me in the least to see Rivas pull the upset. I've never been enamored of Whyte, who always appears vulnerable against higher profile opposition.

[marvelous marv]

Hopefully they make Wilder WBC franchise champion by 2021 and dillion can get KTFO by Ortiz for the regular championship.

[SenorPipino]

Hopefully they make Wilder WBC franchise champion by 2021 and dillion can get KTFO by Ortiz for the regular championship.

You think that the aging Ortiz (even assuming that he's legitimately 40) will still be a factor in 2021?

If Wilder demolishes him in the rematch, Ortiz becomes a gatekeeper at best.

[marvelous marv]

I dont think Whyte can beat anyone in the top 15 of the WBC besides Chisora, Kabayel and Rivas. There's a reason why he is fighting WBC 10. A rematch with Parker would be too dangerous.

[candyslim]

Actually Whyte is a pretty solid -550 favorite over Rivas.

cs: I presume that means Whyte is 550 and Rivas 450 out of 1000? Excuse my ignorance I'm not a betting man.

Simply because he's the bigger name and Rivas remains somewhat of an unknown.

cs: That strikes me as an unreliable reason to make him a favourite in the betting. I'd expect the odds setters to do their research.

Wouldn't surprise me in the least to see Rivas pull the upset. I've never been enamored of Whyte, who always appears vulnerable against higher profile opposition.

cs : That's my point.



I'll never understand why anyone who likes boxing would have a downer on Dillian Whyte. Granted he's got his faults but taking easy fights isn't one of them . He's exciting and he takes on all comers. Why would you dislike him for that?

Ortiz on the other hand gave Wilder a good argument but other than that what has he achieved? The high point of his career being a win over Bryant Jennings which seems a lot less impressive now than it did back then. After that we have a sprinkling of gate-keepers and journeymen. For a man of at least forty in the twighlight of his career, it doesn't exactly blow you away does it?

[SenorPipino]

-550 is the same as being a 5 1/2 to 1 favorite. Put up $550 on Whyte to win back just $100.

Not a totally overwhelming favorite at that price (in comparison Fury opened a lopsided 50 to 1 choice over Schwarz) but very solid. Not slight.

If you're a -550 favorite you are expected to win although upsets at that price aren't all that rare.

Oddsmakers always do their homework. Their jobs are on the line. They do know that the bigger name usually attracts most of the early wagers, so they try to balance it by putting up an attractive price on the underdog.

Right now Rivas is +350. Wager $100 to win back $350 on him.

Different books have different odds depending on how the wagering is going at each. But most are fairly similar.

BTW, I never said I dislike Whyte. I'm hardly his biggest supporter, but there's no animosity.

I just don't think of him as the cream of the crop. Early on he made a name for himself simply by rocking Joshua with one punch.

You can't live off of one punch, especially when you end up getting knocked out.

His recent fights with Parker and Chisora were difficult affairs for him. He was nearly stopped late by Parker. He trailed gatekeeper Chisora on points before getting a late stoppage.

I'm not convinced that Whyte is as good as he wants us to believe. I would certainly never sleep on the solid Rivas' chances in this one.

[oogiebe]

This mandatory talk hasn't been confirmed. Did everyone miss the OP's "?"

[DrDuke]

The Gypsy King is a true mandatory. He earned another shot by an unofficial victory over the Bronze Bomber. The rematch MUST take place.

[SenorPipino]

The Gypsy King is a true mandatory. He earned another shot by an unofficial victory over the Bronze Bomber. The rematch MUST take place.

When Arum feels that it's profitable enough, it will take place.

Patience. Probably another year.

[DrDuke]

When Arum feels that it's profitable enough, it will take place.

Patience. Probably another year.

I can only hope, that you're right. Those marinating stories are quite annoying today.

[SenorPipino]

I can only hope, that you're right. Those marinating stories are quite annoying today.

Arum wants to give Fury American exposure. I don't know if that's actually marinating.

It's just sound business sense. He would lose his shirt if the rematch only attracted the same (or fewer) 325,000 that paid for the first fight.

And considering that the fighters will undoubtedly demand higher purses the second time around, Arum has no choice but to familiarize Fury as much as possible to American audiences.

[marvelous marv]

Fury vs Wilder, if they both had more belts would do bigger business. Alot of casual fans in the US would buy it.

[KiwiRider]

Eddie has forgotten about Usyk hasn't he?

[Enlightened-One]

Eddie has forgotten about Usyk hasn't he?

What do you mean? Usyk’s career direction has already been mapped out hasn’t it?

Oleksandr faces Carlos Takam followed by the winner of the Ruiz Jr-Joshua rematch.

[candyslim]

-550 is the same as being a 5 1/2 to 1 favorite. Put up $550 on Whyte to win back just $100.

Not a totally overwhelming favorite at that price (in comparison Fury opened a lopsided 50 to 1 choice over Schwarz) but very solid. Not slight.

If you're a -550 favorite you are expected to win although upsets at that price aren't all that rare.

Oddsmakers always do their homework. Their jobs are on the line. They do know that the bigger name usually attracts most of the early wagers, so they try to balance it by putting up an attractive price on the underdog.

Right now Rivas is +350. Wager $100 to win back $350 on him.

Different books have different odds depending on how the wagering is going at each. But most are fairly similar.

BTW, I never said I dislike Whyte. I'm hardly his biggest supporter, but there's no animosity.

I just don't think of him as the cream of the crop. Early on he made a name for himself simply by rocking Joshua with one punch.

You can't live off of one punch, especially when you end up getting knocked out.

His recent fights with Parker and Chisora were difficult affairs for him. He was nearly stopped late by Parker. He trailed gatekeeper Chisora on points before getting a late stoppage.

I'm not convinced that Whyte is as good as he wants us to believe. I would certainly never sleep on the solid Rivas' chances in this one.

Thanks for the taking the trouble Pip. Now 11/2 or 5.5/1 I can make sense of. I don't like this new-fangled odds talk.

That wasn't aimed at you about disliking him. It was a general comment but I guess it was Marv who prompted it.

When I talk with reverence about the toughness of his opponents, remember I'm factoring in how dangerous they are to him. I mean I wouldn't be impressed by Wilder or AJ fighting Browne at the time that Whyte did, because they are /were champions, they are expected to fight the cream of the division. Whyte is just a contender he had no obligation to risk his status against someone like Parker who is not your average Joe.

He made hard work of Chisora and he always would because unless you are a 'mover' Chisora is a nightmare to fight. It's precisely because Whyte isn't a supremely gifted boxer, that I have so much respect for him fighting the guys he has fought and continues to fight. Sadly I can't see his win-streak getting a lot longer.