WBC Orders Tyson Fury to Defend Heavyweight Title vs. Dillian Whyte

The WBC on Tuesday ordered Tyson Fury to defend his heavyweight championship against Dillian Whyte, who was the organization's No. 1 contender after becoming interim WBC heavyweight champion in July 2019.

The oddsmakers see this one as lopsided.  They opened odds at Fury -650 versus Whyte back in October.

Fury (31-0-1, 22 KOs) has one fight remaining on his deal with Top Rank while Whyte competes under the Matchroom banner on a fight-by-fight basis.  Should a deal between the two fighters not come to fruition, a purse bid shall be ordered and the rights to the heavyweight tilt will then be auctioned off.

"I'm due an easy fight anyway, [Whyte] would have been ideal really," Fury told iFL TV last month. "Heavy bag on legs is what I'm after to be honest. He'd have been the ideal candidate."

Fury added: "When they make him a mandatory challenger, I will defend my belt and butcher him, no problem."

The 33-year old Jamaican-born Briton is 28-2 with 19 KOs, Whyte has been the betting favorite in all but two bouts during his professional boxing career.

Whyte was a +233 betting underdog against Anthony Joshua in 2015, one of his two losses. He was also a +125 dog when he defeated Joseph Parker by unanimous decision three years later.

"Fury has been mandated to fight me twice. He asked for the WBC 'Diamond' belt to fight me, but ran away when they agreed. He just keeps making excuses," said Whyte.

"Obviously he says he's a fighting man and a man of his word, but we all know he talks a lot of s***, so let's see.

"He said he was going to fight me after he beat Wilder, then he ran away. Let's see what he does."

- Don Shapiro, Gambling911.com