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Olympic silver medalist Ben Whittaker is set to return to boxing “with a bang” in early 2023.
The heavyweight star was very light in his professional debut in July. In front of a raucous crowd, he danced through Greg O’Neill’s first round, and danced through the first round before knocking out his opponent with a single punch in the second round.
“The feedback I got was crazy,” Whittaker said Sky Sports. “I will never forget that night.
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Whittaker made it two for two to start his professional career as he defeated Petar Nosic to claim a unanimous decision victory
“It all just added up and made it a special night and hopefully even more special nights to come.”
In August, he defeated the previously unbeaten Petar Nosic in six rounds to win his second professional bout.
But since then, he has been sidelined with injuries.
But Whittaker has promised to “come back with a bang” and hopes to secure a fight date in March.
He will travel to Miami to attend camp with coach SugarHill Steward.
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Whittaker had time for some showboating during his victory over Nosic
“Since the last fight, I had some time off, I was a bit angry, but now I’m in the gym, I’m training hard, I’m developing my strength. I’m the best now, so I’m very happy,” said Whittaker.
“It’s a technical edge [to focus on] now. Go there, get my technical rights, marry two people, we laugh.”
He barely had two weeks between his first and second pro fight, a mistake he didn’t want to repeat.
“I know I have a niggle but I think I’m used to fighting. I got there and it got worse. Now that I know this pro game, I just need time, take the fight on the right side. time, take the date at the right time because every performance is important,” he said.
“I like to stay active, I like to fight. In the back of my mind, yes, the niggle is there but I want to fight. I want to fight this fight. That’s why I’m trying to take it fast. .”
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Whittaker was analyzing his second fight after winning two out of two to start his pro career when he defeated Nosic
In facing Nosic in just his second pro fight, Whittaker did something rare for a prospect. He boxed an opponent with a 6-0 record who lacked ambition. Nosic is an undefeated pro who has become an international amateur boxer. Whittaker had actually boxed him when he was younger.
“When you fight someone the first time, it’s completely different the second time. We fight each other, we’re still young, I’m 16 or so and stop people,” Whittaker.
After the pro fight, Nosic told Whittaker: “There’s no way that’s going to happen again.”
Whittaker continued: “He came with hunger. That’s the type of fight I want to be in. I want to be in that hungry fight, where it’s not going to my. Because down the line I will need that.”
After a high performance in the first match, he was frustrated with his performance in the second.
He controlled the match, dominated it, won it using quality jabs. But he was his harshest critic.
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Whittaker said he suffered an injury during Nosic’s victory but promised to be back.
“I feel really down. I can’t help it. I’m really high or I’m really low. I’m very, very low. And everyone is like, ‘What are you so tired? This is your second fight. . You won unanimously’. I like, no, no. I’m a real perfectionist and if something goes wrong I get a bit upset,” said Whittaker.
“I can’t control myself, but that’s how I am. I think I can drive myself, if it makes sense. Because I don’t want to feel like that. I train harder. I spar harder, I try and learn and listen better so that I don’t savor the moment.”
Whittaker has ADHD and can find it difficult to manage his emotions. “I still struggle with it now and again. In the Olympics when I had a medal, I didn’t know how to show my emotions and the only way I knew what to do was to put it in my pocket. both for me and I couldn’t help it, ” he said.
Sports have always been her outlet. Finding a way to deal with ADHD first led him to a boxing gym as a child.
“It gave me discipline, it gave me somewhere to channel my energy and since I did boxing it really changed me and calmed me down,” Whittaker said.
“It changed my life too.”
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Whittaker showed some good footwork during general practice
“Boxing, it sounds a bit cliche, but that’s where I really feel at home and I can express myself,” he continued.
“I really enjoy myself. Sometimes I go a little overboard. I look out of the ring, I dance, I have a bit of fun. But I really express myself and thanks to boxing it helps that out.
“I will say whatever is on my mind so that something is in my head, I can’t say it. I will call people out on the spot, I will do something on the spot, it’s just the inner child in ADHD. just talk. Then sometimes I would be very moody, very down and ADHD again. But when people get to know me, they’ll get to know me.”
Returning to training, after a short period of recovery from injury, was also a relief.
“I didn’t train for a bit, I really don’t know what to do with myself but now I’m back there’s nothing better and nowhere I’m happier. I’m thankful for boxing. It’s one of those things – I hate it but I like it,” he said.
Whittaker can express himself when he is boxing (Photo: Lawrence Lustig/BOXXER)
Most of 2022 was spent negotiating professional contracts, phone calls, messages and offers after a good Olympic campaign. This year he can immerse himself in real boxing. That was expected.
He wants to take on his British rivals as he climbs the ranks, rather than race to the world rankings by winning a minor ranking belt from a sanctioning body.
“I don’t want a mess. There are two routes I can take. You see the good amateurs, they go to the ‘Intercontinental’ [belts] and things like that. I like the traditional route and I think especially in England, a lot of British boxing fans like the traditional route,” Whittaker said.
“I want to do that. I think you’re going to fight more, you learn more along the way and you take a lot of titles. I want to go down the traditional route and I’m going to beat that type of guy at a pretty fast level and pretty early.
“Two Brits, title in line, whether it is English, English, like that, it always brings an eye to war.
“I think the route is downhill and once you’ve conquered England, you have to slow down.”
Whittaker has a vision of how he wants to plan his way to the top (Photo: Lawrence Lustig/BOXXER)
Dan Azeez, the current British champion, is a good example.
“He could easily pick up some international fights that no one knows about, no one pays attention to and that’s when you go under the radar,” Whittaker said.
“He has fought ex-British champions, ex-world champions, people like that. It brings a bit of buzz, it brings a bit of eyeballs and he shines. So it’s a good route to go down and it’s more of a fighting way.”
With what he accomplished as an amateur, as difficult as the lightweight division, he knew that if he could do it, he could reach the world level.
“If you don’t think that, you’re doing the wrong sport,” he said.
“I just think my style, my speed and the way I fight, I think I’m going to cause a lot of problems for guys. All I need is experience. to be able to beat them.”
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