Eddie Hearn explains why Ben Whittaker will always face amplified criticism

On October 3, at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham, Ben Whittaker overcame a spirited late rally to defeat Conor Wallace by unanimous decision. The headline bout was an eliminator for the IBF light heavyweight world title currently held by Dmitry Bivol. Whittaker has faced much criticism for his performance in those last three rounds. Eddie Hearn spoke to Ariel Helwani, defending Whittaker, explaining that because of his personality, criticism will always be amplified.

Ben Whittaker defeats Conor Wallace in IBF light heavyweight eliminator

Whittaker (13-0-1, 9 KOs) looked sharp in the early rounds, finding openings and picking his shots impressively. He rocked Wallace (17-2, 12 KOs) in round three with an overhand left, causing the Aussie southpaw to be cut over his left eyebrow.

As the fight reached the middle rounds, Wallace had limited success, but the Brit still looked sharp, landing the more eye-catching punches. Whittaker looked in complete control up until the tenth round, when Wallace landed several straight lefts, and Whittaker looked exhausted throughout the final three rounds, falling to the canvas on multiple occasions. It was a messy end to the fight, but Whittaker’s work in the first nine rounds had him way up on the scorecards, which after the final bell read 117-111, 116-112, and 115-113.

Eddie Hearn reflects on Whittaker criticism

Speaking to Ariel Helwani, Hearn discussed the criticism aimed at Whittaker and said that this will always be there when he doesn’t perform at his best, because of his personality:

“When you are a star like Ben is, and you have that kind of persona, cockiness and brashness, when things don’t go your way everyone is going to jump on you tenfold.

“I’m completely convinced Ben is going to go on and win world championships, but you’ve got to learn and come back better. He knows if he’s going to be the way he is, he’s going to get loads of stick when it doesn’t go his way. People want to see him fail,” said Hearn.

The Big Fight Weekend verdict

Ben Whittaker’s talent cannot be questioned. He has speed, slick footwork, and punches with accuracy. However, his ability to challenge the best light heavyweights remains to be seen. Watching the fight back, the situation is clear to me. He boxed well for nine rounds, with Wallace unable to land much of note. It appeared to me it was a combination of exhaustion and switching off that led to those final three rounds.

His trainer Andy Lee did mention that Whittaker recently had Covid; however, if that is the case, he should have managed the early rounds better and done less showboating to conserve his energy. Whether he was ill or not doesn’t matter; the fact is, Whittaker needs to improve, and he has the attributes to reach the very top, but whether he can improve remains to be seen.

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Featured Image Credit:

Mark Robinson Matchroom Boxing