ROCK STAR OR ROCK BOTTOM

Whyte is out for revenge against Povetkin in Gibraltar tonight but admits another defeat could end his world title dreams

DILLIAN WHYTE takes on Alexander Povetkin tonight with his career stuck between the Rock of Gibraltar and a hard place.

Whyte’s dream world title shot remains out of reach even though the WBC named him No.1 heavyweight challenger four years ago.

His KO defeat by Povetkin in August cost him the interim title and he has slipped to sixth in the WBC’S list of challengers.

Whyte, 32, admits his career is on the line in the Rumble on the Rock and is aware a second defeat could KO his world title hopes.

Even if he wins he will still be at least a year away from a shot – the four main heavyweight belts are tied up because of the scheduled fights between Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury (below).

He would not even become the WBC’S mandatory challenger.

Having clocked up more than 1,000 days as their No.1 contender, he is frustrated at being overlooked. “The mandatory position is on hold at the minute, but the winner of this fight should be in the mandatory position and in line for a title fight next,” he said.

“Hopefully I won’t have to wait another 1,000 days. I should be right back where I was, the No.3 heavyweight in the world, and I should get my title shot this time.

“Boxing is a strange sport, you can be mandatory, you can be No.1, you can pay all your sanctioning fees and yet still not get a shot because, if you’re dangerous, guys will avoid you. I’m the kind of guy who can throw a spanner in the works so the big fights don’t happen. It’s difficult but it is what it is.”

Whyte, his usual laid-back self this week, has enjoyed the facilities on the five-star yacht hotel, the Sunborn Gibraltar. He dismissed any suggestion that he is mentally scarred by his shattering loss last time out when Povetkin turned the fight in an instant with a thunderous left uppercut.

Whyte says his tough upbringing in Jamaica and Brixton means he can handle anything and he is adamant he will have his revenge tonight.

“After what I’ve been through in life, a knock-out in this sport is nothing,” he said. “I’ve gone through many things in my life and suffered as a child, so this is nothing. It’s one knockout. I’ve had two losses in 29 fights. I’m not one of those guys who needs time to process stuff mentally and worry about it. I don’t need to spend two weeks thinking about the defeat and another two weeks getting ready, psychologically ready. I lost, we regroup and we go again.

“That’s my mindset, I’ve always been a warrior. I was forced to be a warrior from an early age, I was forced to learn how to survive.

“For me, I shouldn’t be where I am now because I’ve had no amateur grounding, no top promoters behind me for a long time. I’ve come up swimming against the tide. But I will get my revenge.”