WHITTAKER AIMS TO SILENCE THE DOUBTERS WHILST SMITH LOOKS TO BOOK WORLD TITLE SHOT

In what many thought was going to be a routine victory for Ben Whittaker against the resurgent Liam Cameron, the fight proved to be anything but that — and now, as a result, we have one of the most highly anticipated domestic rematches of the year this Sunday evening.

A Tokyo 2020 Olympic silver medallist, there’s been a heck of a lot of hype around Ben Whittaker since making his pro debut back in July 2022 — and rightly so.

A seriously talented fighter who entertains inside the ring with his skills and outside of it with his chat, it’s no wonder that he is one of the most spoken-about prospects in world boxing — never mind British boxing.

However, in his ninth fight in the paid ranks, he came up against Liam Cameron — a fighter in his fifth bout since being handed a four-year ban — and it didn’t go to plan.

After starting the fight quickly, Whittaker took the early rounds, but even though he was planting his feet, he wasn’t putting a dent in Cameron, who continued to march forward and soak up the pressure.

As the fight went on, Cameron was getting more and more into it and looked as though he was starting to take control.

Then came the controversy.

With the bell for the end of the sixth round ringing, Cameron pushed Whittaker back onto the ropes — and over they both went.

It was almost WWE-esque.

Unfortunately, an ankle injury to Whittaker meant he was unable to continue, so to the cards they went — with the judges all split, meaning the fight ended in a technical draw.

So, what will be different in the rematch?

Well, one thing is for certain — we’ll see much better versions of both fighters.

Whittaker has teamed up with Andy Lee, former world champion and one of the most sought-after trainers in boxing right now, and that partnership will bring him on in leaps and bounds.

Anyone who knows Whittaker will know he’s much better than what he showed on that night in Saudi in October — but with that expectation comes pressure. And despite him probably being much better than Cameron on paper, the weight of expectation and pressure on fighters (and people in general) can sometimes make that ability irrelevant.

Cameron, under the tutelage of Grant Smith and Pearce Gudgeon, looks in the shape of his life. The four years out of the ring seem to have done him the world of good, and despite this being his 31st fight as a professional, it wouldn’t be obscene to say that he is still a bit of an unknown quantity in this second phase of his career.

Expect Cameron to put the pressure on Whittaker from the off. He will believe he has a much better engine than Whittaker after the first fight, so he’ll be looking to take the Olympic silver medallist into the deep and dark waters he very nearly did last time.

Whittaker, meanwhile, needs to box smart. He’ll likely get on the back foot and look to pick off Cameron. He was complacent in the first fight and can’t afford to be like that again — and he most certainly won’t be.

If he can show us what he’s been threatening to show so far in his pro career, and manage to go through the gears, he could well make this a very tough night at the office for Cameron and silence the doubters once and for all.

To the undercard, and there are some absolute belters here. Sam Eggington — who is literally NEVER in a bad fight — takes on Lee Cutler, whilst Frazer Clarke returns for the first time since his defeat to Fabio Wardley against the hard-hitting Ebenezer Tetteh.

A couple of other fights to watch out for on the undercard: Tyler Denny up against Elvis Ahorgah, and the highly rated Elliot Whale facing off with IBF European champ Lucas Ballingall in what promises to be an absolute banger.