LAST seen catapulting over the ring in Riyadh, Ben Whittaker’s return to action is anything but low-key. The circumstances of his first bout with Liam Cameron were unforeseen and unwanted so far as Whittaker’s trajectory towards world-class is concerned. For everyone else, it has created a number of intriguing storylines, hopefully to be settled on Sunday evening.
“I believe that was the best chance to get me. He didn’t. Now, Sunday, it’s all fresh. It’s all new,” hummed Whittaker, before adding “We’ll see”, not for the first or last time during the press conference. One wonders whether he is waiting “to see” and find out how much has changed, just as much as the paying public is.
One of the key storylines that has raged all week is “round-gate”, which saw the bout culled from 12 rounds (probably never a realistic duration) to 10. Whittaker even joked that he heard it was going to be an eight-rounder.
Moments earlier, Cameron had teased that Whittaker should’ve called his bluff and agreed to the 12. Cameron likely knows that the full 12 wouldn’t have suited Ben at this stage of his fledgling eight-fight career.
“I don’t really know what the rounds will be, but we’ll see,” murmured Whittaker. “Listen, we’ve done all the work in the gym. We’ve done many, many rounds, and we’ll see.”
As interviewer Andy Scott poked and prodded at Whittaker, looking for a promotional line, he touched upon the new training setup that has seen the Darlaston boxer relocate his training camp to Ireland. New trainer Andy Lee, a former world champion who is quickly earning his stripes as a coach, is tasked with recalibrating the faltering Whittaker engine.
“How much in 12 weeks can you change – 16 weeks?” asked Whittaker rhetorically. “Yeah, I guess you’ll see that on Sunday, but it’s funny, a lot of people only think we started working together when we announced it. We’ve been together for a good while now, and that’s what a lot of people don’t know.
“We announced it when we announced it, but trust me, we’ve been in the gym. I’ve been over in Ireland for a while. I’ve been going back and forth, so it’s all good. We’ve got structure. It’s been a great camp. He’s [Andy Lee] a great person to be around. I’m picking up things. I’m learning things. It’s a great person to be with.”
