Thursday 30 July 2015 13:27, UK
Dillian Whyte wants to deliver an explosive win over Irineu Beato Costa Junior as he warms up for his grudge fight with Anthony Joshua later this year.
The Brixton heavyweight has been absent from the ring since February due to a hand injury and returns to action on a packed bill for Luke-Campbell’s all-Hull clash with Tommy Coyle this Saturday, live on Sky Sports.
Whyte’s much-touted battle with Joshua is expected to take place in either November or December but his first priority is to showcase his punching power against the Brazilian this weekend.
“That’s always my aim in every fight I have, I try to put on a good show. Try and give the fans what they want,” he told Sky Sports.
“When the fans come and see me, they always expect something and I try and do my best to deliver, I try to fight to the best of my ability. At the end of the day, my end goal is to knock someone out.”
David Price took six rounds to stop Costa Junior earlier this year as he built towards a European title fight against Erkan Teper, which he lost in dramatic style.
But Whyte has not put pressure on himself to better the Liverpudlian’s display and admits he needs to sharpen his skills after his recent lay-off.
“To be honest, at this stage of my career, I’m not in any rush or any competition with anybody," he said. "I’ve never been past four rounds in my whole career.
At the end of the day, my end goal is to knock someone out
“I’m not overlooking this guy but I’ve got bigger fish to fry and I’m trying to get as much experience as I can.
"If I go past four rounds, for me it’s experience. If I get him out of there before that, then it’s just another fight.
Settling a long-running feud with Joshua is a short-term goal for Whyte, but he has set his sights even higher, on European and even world titles.
“There are so many good fights out there for me at this moment in time,” he said. “Erkan Teper just beat Price to win the European title. That’s a fight that I believe I can win with ease. There are guys like Lucas Browne, Dereck Chisora, there are lots of fights out there for me.
“You need to be smart and make the right moves financially and business-wise. I’ll fight anybody, but it will have to make sense. I’m 14-0 and I need to start an assault on the European and world stage.
"Anybody that makes sense for me to fight in the rankings or financially, then we can get it on.”
Watch Whyte's clash with Costa Junior on the undercard of Campbell's Hull showdown against Coyle this Saturday at 8pm on Sky Sports 1.
