Ben Whittaker made a statement with an emphatic second-round victory in his rematch with Liam Cameron last month.
After falling out of the ring in his first fight with Cameron, injury prevented the Olympic silver medallist from continuing and Whittaker’s professional record took its first blemish with a technical decision draw.
Whittaker came under intense scrutiny after that, and celebrated wildly in his opponent’s corner after winning the second fight in style.
That became a talking point after the contest, although Anthony Yarde and Lyndon Arthur, potential future rivals for Whittaker, declined to join in the chorus of criticism.
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Whittaker was full of emotions during his post-fight press conference following his KO win over Cameron
“After the fight he went to the corner of Cameron,” Yarde told Sky Sports. “He celebrated in their face. Was it justified? I don’t know because I don’t know if Liam Cameron’s team were saying things in the build-up and from what I saw myself Ben Whittaker had gotten a lot of backlash, people saying he’s a cop out, he lied and wasn’t really injured. He had to go through that whole period.
“Maybe in his celebration he was just a bit overwhelmed and it showed in the after-fight press conference when he started crying. The emotions got the better of him.
“Sometimes in the heat of the moment you can’t really judge people for how they act or things they do. It’s sometimes excitement and emotions getting out of control.
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Johnny Nelson and Dave Coldwell disagreed on whether Whittaker had crossed the line with his ring celebrations following victory over Cameron
“Some people are just better at masking it than others,” Yarde added.
“Can you imagine your average Joe walking down the street, how they would react, or people at home if they were ever in that position? They say they would react one way, but how they actually react they don’t know because they’re not in that situation, they’re not in that predicament.”
Arthur, who lost a trilogy fight with Yarde at the end of last month, holds a points win of his own over Cameron.
Reflecting on Whittaker’s celebration, he told Sky Sports: “I don’t think it was right but I think what Andy Lee said – the heightened emotions, he’d been through a lot over the past six months, a lot of doubt, and I think it come out probably by accident.”
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Whittaker’s full interview after he beat Cameron and his post-fight clash with his opponent’s corner
Yarde will likely be positioning himself for a world championship fight, though Arthur, who has only lost to Yarde and Dmitry Bivol, the division’s best fighter, could be a possible opponent for a future fight with Whittaker.
Arthur has taken note of Whittaker’s previous comments. “He was talking [rubbish] about me before he quit in the first fight against Cameron. He’s a big name,” Arthur said. “He’s just a bit of a clown. When we were in the ABAs together he posted pictures of me, he was cool.
“That’s boxing. You can have competition, it can be healthy competition, but you don’t have to chat [rubbish] and put people down. But it’s his persona. I don’t hate it. Prince Naseem and everyone, they were the same but they were the kind of boxers I liked, I watched growing up. I can’t hate what he does.
“I understand but because it’s against me or about me I’m going to think [that] naturally.”
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Whittaker stuck his head through the ropes and celebrated in the faces of the Cameron’s corner moments after winning by a spectacular knockout in the second round
Promoter Ben Shalom did point out that Whittaker is just 10 fights into his professional career and doesn’t have to be rushed.
“I want to see him get experience with [new trainer] Andy Lee. I want to see him fight different styles. I want to see him box internationally. I want to see him develop as a fighter,” Shalom told Sky Sports.
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Whittaker stopped Cameron in the second round of their highly-anticipated rematch
“We believe and know he has the talent and we know he has everything to become a world champion and go down as one of the greats.
“Can we now translate that? Can we give him the experience that that talent deserves so that he can fulfil what his legacy needs to be? That’s what it’s all about after this fight.
“Ten fights, the hype train is absolutely huge but I want to see him get his experience.”
