Whittaker beats Wallace to earn shot at Bivol
Ben Whittaker is one win away from a world title shot after outpointing Conor Wallace in Birmingham.
Whittaker, 29, took a unanimous points decision at the Utilita Arena on Saturday, 3 October, with judges scoring it 117-111, 116-112 and 115-113 in his favour, according to BBC Sport. He headlined the DAZN-broadcast card as a strong favourite and closed the show in front of his home city.
The win makes him the mandatory challenger for the IBF world title. That means the sanctioning body, one of boxing's four major organisations, orders the champion to face him next.
Whittaker is a British light-heavyweight and Olympic silver medallist. Light-heavyweight is the 12st 7lb division, a step below cruiserweight and heavyweight. He stays unbeaten as a professional at 13 wins and one draw.
He had to earn it. Wallace, 30, made the closing rounds uncomfortable. He hurt Whittaker in the 10th and pressed hard again in the 12th, forcing the home favourite to hold on and think clearly under fire.
Wallace drops to 17 wins and two defeats across his 19-fight career. He called for an immediate rematch straight after the decision.
What makes this stand out is the queue Whittaker now joins. He is lined up for IBF champion Dmitry Bivol, who also holds the WBA 'super' and WBO belts as a unified champion, a fighter who holds more than one major title at the same time.
Bivol is expected to face Liverpool's Callum Smith in December. The plan, as laid out before fight night by Matchroom Boxing, was for the Whittaker-Wallace winner to meet the winner of that bout.
The Birmingham card also delivered a finish further down the bill. Bilal Fawaz stopped Eithan James in the eighth round to keep his British and Commonwealth light-middleweight titles.
Light-middleweight sits at 11st. Fawaz pulled away late to force the stoppage and collect a £5,000 stoppage bonus put up by promoter Eddie Hearn. He then called out IBF world champion Josh Kelly and Conor Benn.
For fans, this means clarity. Whittaker has his route. No more eliminators or arguments about who is next. Win in December for Bivol or Smith, and the Birmingham man waits.
