Eddie Hearn says he wants to take British light heavyweight contender Ben Whittaker to America for his next fight after knocking out Benjamin Gavazi in one round last Saturday night in Birmingham, England.
Matchroom promoter Hearn says that the American fans will “love” Whittaker’s style of fighting. He wants to see who he can get undefeated WBC Silver 175-lb champion Whittaker (10-0-1, 7 KOs) to fight.
David Morrell as a potential American opponent
The US-born top 10 light heavyweight contenders are not well known to American fans. Hearn is unlikely to want to risk matching Whittaker against some of the American-based contenders such as these two:
- David Morrell – based in Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Oleksandr Gvozdyk – based in Camarillo, California
If Hearn wants Whittaker to win over American boxing fans, getting him a victory against Morrell or Gvozdyk would be the way to go in the short term. The problem is that the 28-year-old Whittaker would have a high probability of losing to both fighters. He would be exposed by them as a fake.
Whittaker is a major domestic talent, but he hasn’t shown the kind of ability as a pro or amateur that would suggest he could beat the 27-year-old Morrell (12-1, 9 KOs) or former WBC light heavyweight champion Gvozdyk (21-2, 17 KOs). Still, if the idea is to turn Whittaker into a star in America, matching him against these two is the way to achieve that goal quickly.
Hearn isn’t going to turn Whittaker into a star by being sly about it, comparing him to lesser American fighters, hoping to take a backdoor route to make a big name for himself in America. We’ve seen the matchups Hearn has done with his previous American Matchroom fighters, such as Shakur Stevenson, putting him in with an electrician, Josh Padley, perhaps hoping to impress American fans. It didn’t work. Americans didn’t like what they saw.
“There’s going to be a lot of pressure from DAZN in the UK to keep him here because he’s doing massive numbers. But they also have to buy into development. But I think he’ll do really well in America. He’s got a massive fan base there already socially,” promoter Eddie Hearn said. Ring Magazine about Ben Whittaker’s next fight after knocking out Benjamin Gavazi in one round last Saturday night.
How American fans see British light heavyweights
If Hearn keeps Whittaker in the UK, he will be seen by American audiences as a domestic level fighter in the same vein as Anthony Yarde, Joshua Buatsi, Callum Smith and Willy Hutchinson. Interestingly, these are fighters that Hearn is excited to match Whittaker against, suggesting that he is only going to be a UK-type fighter, and not considered truly world class. American fans will see him as a bigger version of Conor Benn, a guy who is seen as a YouTuber type fighter.
“I think they (Americans) will like his style and his performance. Yes, it will suit us to fight an American opponent. We will see who it can be. There are so many fights to be made. Everyone is talking about Buatsi, Yarde, Callum, and Benavidez calling him out. We are not going to be short of opponents.
Evaluate the safer American names for Whittaker
- Richard ‘Popeye The Sailor Man’ Rivera
- Deon Nicholson
- Najee Lopez
“We’ve just got to get it right with Ben. He’s had 11 fights. He’s a superstar in the making. He’s a global talent. We’ve got to get the experience before we make the big gamble,” Hearn said.
The age problem: almost 29 and still protected
Whittaker is almost 29 years old, and that’s not young for a fighter who is still being cautiously matched by a promoter. He is older than the 27-year-old Morrellwho is already a former two-division world champion with only 13 pro fights. If Whittaker isn’t the real deal, it’s pointless for Hearn to maneuver him around the dangerous predators at 175. He can’t be protected in his 30s against the wolves, like Morrell, David Benavidez, Gvozdyk, and Imam Khataev.
Last updated on 30/11/2025
