Dillian Whyte targets comeback bout against Derek Chisora, Andy Ruiz or Jarrell Miller

Dillian Whyte is the latest in a long line of fading boxers yearning for one last roll of the dice. Not so long ago, Whyte was arguably the best heavyweight in the division to not wear a belt. Today, at 38 years old, he’s facing the abyss of the boxing afterlife following a humbling and conclusive first-round KO loss to new kid on the block, Moses Itauma.

That setback occurred 12 months ago. Before it came unconvincing wins over Ebenezer Tetteh and Christian Hammer as he attempted to rebuild after a projected August 2023 rematch with Anthony Joshua had to be canned following adverse findings from Whyte's PED tests in the build-up.

The year before, Whyte was on the wrong end of a one-sided drubbing dished out by then-WBC champion Tyson Fury in April 2022. Truth is, Whyte may already have been past his best by the time he got his shot at the “Gypsy King”.

After being knocked out by Joshua in 2015, victories over Derek Chisora (twice), Joseph Parker and Oscar Rivas – all gruelling affairs – had likely taken their toll when Whyte was knocked out in five rounds by Alexander Povetkin in August 2020. Though Whyte would dominate the return with Povetkin to set up the shot at Fury, the Jamaican-born Londoner had already endured tremendous punishment up to that point.

Throw in the revealing collapse against Itauma in his most recent bout and the road back for Whyte isn’t just long, it’s almost impossible to map.

Whyte, 31-4 (21 KOs), is willing to try, however.

In talks with Queensberry about a comeback, Whyte is not unrealistic about the likelihood of regaining his status as a contender.

"I understand I’m coming off a first-round defeat, I'm not deluded,” he told Sky Sports. “I understand that I need a fight to get myself back into contention, so [I’ll fight] whoever really.

"I just want to just get a fight back and just get back in the ring, shake some ring rust and just get my groove on again and then fight whoever there is to fight.

"I'd love to fight Derek Chisora, Andy Ruiz, [Jarrell] Miller. These are guys from my era... I'd love to fight them.”