THE scheduled 12th August rematch between Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte is off.
Matchroom Boxing announced Saturday morning that Whyte had failed a drug test, forcing the fight to be scrapped.
“Today, the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association informed Matchroom, the Association of Boxing Commissions and the British Boxing Board of Control that Dillian Whyte had returned Adverse Analytical findings as part of a random anti-doping protocol,” a Matchroom statement said. “In light of this news, the fight will be cancelled, and a full investigation will be conducted.”
Joshua (25-3, 22 KO) was looking for his second consecutive win after dropping the WBO, WBA and IBF heavyweight championships to Oleksandr Usyk and losing the rematch. He defeated Jermaine Franklin by a decision in April to get back on the winning track.
Joshua and Whyte (29-3, 19 KO) previously fought in December 2015, with Joshua scoring a seventh-round stoppage to win the British heavyweight championship. One fight later, Joshua knocked out Charles Martin to win his first world championship.
Whyte has not fought since November 2022, also defeating Franklin, though only managing to win two of the three official scorecards for a majority decision. Prior to the win over Franklin, Whyte lost to a dominant Tyson Fury in Whyte’s long-awaited first shot at a world championship.
This is the third failed drug test of Whyte’s career, having failed tests in 2019 ahead of a fight with Oscar Rivas in which the Rivas camp was not informed of the failed test and the fight went ahead, as well as a failed post-fight drug test after his 2012 fight with Sandor Balogh.
It is unclear whether the event will move forward. There are heavyweights on the undercard, including in the co-feature between Filip Hrgovic and Demsey McKean. It’s possible Matchroom could attempt to use one of those fighters as a late replacement to face Joshua.
Dillian Whyte vows to prove innocence over ‘adverse’ test with Joshua fight off
Meanwhile, Dillian Whyte has vowed to prove his innocence after returning “adverse analytical findings” in a doping test that led to the cancellation of his bout against Anthony Joshua next Saturday.
An eagerly anticipated rematch between the British heavyweights was called off by Matchroom after the Voluntary Anti-Doping Association informed the promoters and boxing authorities about the test result.
It is understood Joshua could still fight at London’s O2 Arena as Matchroom seek a late replacement opponent for the former two-time world heavyweight champion but Whyte faces a battle to clear his name.
He wrote on his social media channels: “I am shocked and devastated to learn of a report by Vada of adverse findings relating to me. I only learned of it this morning and am still reacting to it.
“I have also just seen that the fight is being cancelled without having any chance to demonstrate my innocence before the decision was taken. I can confirm without a shadow of a doubt that I have not taken the reported substance, in this camp or at any point in my life. I am completely innocent and ask to be given the time to go through the process of proving this without anybody jumping to conclusions or a trial by media.”
Whyte served a two-year drugs ban from 2012 to 2014 and was cleared of a doping violation in 2019 after UK Anti-Doping concluded the levels in his sample were “very low” and he was ultimately not to blame. The Londoner added:
“I insisted on 24/7 Vada testing for this fight, as I have done voluntarily and at my own expense for all of my fights for many, many years. This is not the first time that I have been reported as having an adverse finding for a substance which I have not taken, and as I did last time I will again prove that I am completely innocent. All I can do is express my extreme disappointment to boxing fans, who will miss out on what was sure to be a great event.”
Whyte suffered his first professional defeat in December 2015 after being stopped by Joshua, who avenged a loss to his British rival in their amateur days. While Joshua went on to win a world title in his next bout, Whyte rebuilt with 11 straight victories to become the WBC’s mandatory challenger before a savage knockout defeat to Alexander Povetkin in 2020.
He gained revenge in the immediate rematch but his only world title tilt to date ended in disappointment when he was stopped by WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury in the sixth round in April 2022.
He rebounded with an unconvincing majority points win over Jermaine Franklin last November in his most recent bout, while Joshua received criticism for his performance against the American in April.
That set the British pair on a collision course once again, and another win over Whyte would have put Joshua on the road to a showdown against former WBC champion Deontay Wilder in December in Saudi Arabia.
Eighteen-Eleven Media