Tyson Fury Push: Dillian Whyte Wants A Rematch Claiming Knockout Shove to the Canvas Was Illegal

By Robert Brizel, Head Real Combat Media Boxing Correspondent

Lennox Lewis knocked out Iron Mike Tyson with a push to the canvas at 2:25 of the eighth round at The Pyramid in Memphis, Tennessee, on June 8, 2002, in the main event, Tyson being counted out in his final world heavyweight title bout by the late referee Eddie Cotton. The World Boxing Council, International Boxing Federation and International Boxing Organization World Heavyweight titles, held by Lewis, were at stake at the time. Tyson lost two of his next three bouts and then retired, returning only in limited exhibitions since.

Now, 20 years later, heavyweight contender Dillian Whyte, dropped and stopped by Tyson Fury in an attempt to win the World Boxing Council World Heavyweight title at Wembley Arena in London, United Kingdom, on April 23, 2022, in the BT Sport televised main event, has cried foul.

Whyte now claims all Fury did was push him to the canvas where he hit his head on the ring floor from what Whyte calls an illegal shove. The match is therefore subject to an immediate appeal by the Dillian Whyte camp. Here is what Whyte told Sky Sports.

“The (an) uppercut landed (thrown by Fury). I was buzzed, but as I was trying to gather my senses, he full on shoved me (to the canvas), and I fell over and hit my head on the canvas, which is illegal! This isn’t wrestling. This is boxing. But, as usual, they let Fury do what he wants, and get (he got) away with it. I should have been allowed extra time to recover, and then carry on fighting. He pushed me (to the canvas illegally) and said to the referee: ‘Don’t let the fight carry on’. The referee is not doing his job. how can someone (be allowed to do and say what he did). Okay. I got caught with a good shot and I was hurt, but I didn’t go straight down.”

Everybody witnessed the shove. Whyte did have a head impact on the canvas to some degree, and got up, but was dizzy and his equilibrium was off. Truth be told, it was the Tyson Fury uppercut that did the damage, and Whyte was out of it. When you get up from the canvas, a fighter still has to be able to demonstrate the ability to continue the contest. If Whyte were protesting foul, maybe he should have stayed down. Referee Mark Lyson, who also refereed Whyte’s loss to Alexander Povetkin in August 2020 at Matchroom HQ Garden in Brentwood. Clearly has a knowledge of what Whyte has or does not have. To this report,

Whyte’s wolf cry is a cry of sour grapes for an additional payday. Whyte made his backroom noises and taunts, and after he stepped into the ring, his masquerade ended abruptly. Against a super fighting champion like Tyson Fury, Whyte was not even a six rounds fighter at the championship level. Get decked by an authoritative puncher like Tyson Fury or Lennox Lewis or Muhammad Ali or George Foreman or Rocky Marciano or Jack Johnson in their prime, and good luck trying to get up. It ain’t happening for most heavyweight pretender contenders against legitimate finishers. You wouldn’t want to meet Sonny Liston or Louis in a dark alley. 94 thousand enthusiastic fans watched the Fury of Fury as Fury wiped the floor with Whyte, and to continue the bout from that point, or even consider this appeal, is madness. Whyte lost, plain and simple, and you cannot make controversy out of simple Simon.

Accept humility gracefully, and move on. Fury is too big, too strong, and too powerful for most opponents, though he does cut against superior technical fighters. Fury has a heart, the most important consideration for any occupation of passion, and Whyte does not have that subconscious fighting heart. It is the same heart which enabled Fury to tangle with Deontay Wilder twice. Whyte will return soon, perhaps after a fight with MMA star Francis Ngannou or the winner of Oleksandr Usyk versus Anthony Joshua II. If Whyte really has ability to back his mouth, let Whyte fight Wilder, Filip Hrgovic, Luis Ortiz, Andy Ruiz Jr., or even Joe Joyce or Daniel Dubois in England, and let’s see if he still has any bragging rights left after his next bout in 2022.

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