After being out of the ring for almost 18 months, Dillian Whyte is back in action this weekend as he takes on Christian Hammer in Castelbar, Ireland.
The fight news came quickly after it was announced that Whyte had been cleared to box by the Texas State Athletic Commission, with whom he holds his professional boxing license.
Always an outspoken character, ‘The Bodysnatcher’ has made a few enemies amongst his fellow heavyweights over the years – and one of them has had a bit to say.
Congolese contender Martin Bakole got into a war of words with Whyte in Poland last year, after the latter made some crude comments about him during an interview with a Polish TV station.
And in a recent interview with IFL TV, Bakole did not hold back on the returning Brixton slugger.
“You are a bum! F*** you, Dillian Whyte. The day I face you, you will retire that day – f*** you!
“I remember in Poland, this mother***** called me names live on telly. And now he’s back.
“He’s a drug cheat, he’s a p**** and he’s a bum.
‼️ Dillian Whyte and Martin Bakole clashing backstage in Poland tonight…
[🎥 YT – Guesswho] pic.twitter.com/YQDO3BJJJG
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) April 22, 2023
“He must the sign the contract. He’s coming back, so let him have his first fight.
“The second one? Pick me! I’ll kick his a***. Motherf*****!”
There is clearly plenty of ill feeling on the side of Bakole from the incident, which took place after his fight with Ihor Shevadzutskyi last April.
(Photo Credit: Lawrence Lustig, Boxxer)
Since then, the 30-year-old has had one outing, a four round demolition of Carlos Takam on the undercard of Tyson Fury vs Francis Ngannou back in October.
Whyte, now 35, has not boxed since his majority decision victory over Jermaine Franklin in November 2022, and there are big question marks over whether he can still compete at the business end of the heavyweight division.
Prior to the Franklin fight, he was conclusively stopped in six rounds by Fury at Wembley Stadium in his only shot at a world title to date.
Whyte had been scheduled to face Anthony Joshua in a money-spinning rematch last August, however this fell through just days out from the contest after he returned a positive VADA test.
