Dillian Whyte says he has become so frustrated as his career stalled after an irregular doping test that he considered walking away from the sport.
Whyte faces Mariusz Wach on Saturday in the London heavyweight’s first fight since a points win over Oscar Rivas, a fight that went ahead after a hearing of the National Anti-Doping Panel into the irregular test result.
Whyte remains clear to box, but UK Anti-Doping have yet to issue any statement over the case, leaving a cloud over Whyte’s future.
“It’s good to be back in the ring,” Whyte said. “It’s been stressful and a few times I’ve thought about walking away from boxing and jacking it in. But my team, they kept pushing me, urging me to go to the gym and taking the mickey out of me, saying my belly was getting bigger.
“I’ve got a great team, they motivate me. There were a few times I thought ‘forget boxing’, I’ve had enough and run off into the night because it’s been so stressful. So it’s good to be back in the ring, motivated. I just want to get on and do what I do best, which is be one of the top heavyweights in the country.
“In life or business, you need a good team of people around. I’m a very strong person mentally and physically, but without my team, I would have walked away from boxing, without a doubt. You would not be interviewing me today.”
Whyte said that he felt the past few months had been a very testing time for him.
“I’ve been stressed and depressed,” he said.
“I’m not someone to talk about my emotions, but I have been stressed and down and depressed. But my team kept pushing me and pushing me.“Two things I know are to be brave and to fight. Those are the two things I’m good at. It’s what got me in trouble a lot growing up, being stubborn and loving fighting, but now it’s my fuel which is great.”
Another frustration has been his inability to land a shot at WBC champion Deontay Wilder, despite having been the WBC’s No 1 contender for more than 18 months.
But if he beats Wach, the former world title challenger who turns 40 later this month, Whyte will at least keep his recent winning record going. Whyte has won ten bouts in a row since his one loss, to Anthony Joshua in 2015.
“I’ve been looking to go places year in, year out,” he said. “These guys say I’m rubbish, I’m slow, I’m this and that, I can’t punch, but none of them want to fight me. I don’t understand it, I don’t understand it.
“Hopefully in a year, I’ll be the heavyweight champion of the world.
“Never in the history of heavyweight boxing [has someone waited for a title shot as long]. Maybe Jack Johnson and Sonny Liston. Maybe those two guys.
“It adds extra stress. Boxing is a very dark, muddy, murky waters. One day you’re floating and the next day, you’re sinking. I’ve learnt a lot of lessons from boxing. It’s made me stronger as a person and given me a better life.”
