Dillian Whyte has been quieter than a church mouse for the past several months but we’ll hear from him soon.
The British heavyweight contender will take on Mariusz Wach on the undercard of the Andy Ruiz Jr.-Anthony Joshua rematch Dec. 7 in Saudi Arabia, it was confirmed in a release today. The news comes as Whyte has been embroiled in a PED scandal that has seen him disappear recently from the public eye.
Whyte tested positive for a banned substance before his July 20 fight against Oscar Rivas, in which Whyte survived a ninth round knockdown to win a unanimous decision. The test was administered by UK Anti-Doping.
Whyte’s “A” sample reportedly showed small amounts of epimethandienone and hydroxymethandienone, which are metabolites found in the banned substance Dianabol.
Just added to the #ClashOnTheDunes undercard 👊🇸🇦
🔘 @DillianWhyte vs Mariusz Wach
🔘 Mahammadrasul Majidov vs @tomnotsolittle
🔥 #WhyteWach #MajidovLittle #RuizJoshua2 pic.twitter.com/LLsXpy5LaR
— Matchroom Boxing (@MatchroomBoxing) November 27, 2019
It was revealed afterward that the British Board of Boxing Control, as well as Whyte and his promoter, Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Boxing, had been notified of the results before the fight while Rivas and his team were kept in the dark. Hearn said he couldn’t share his knowledge of the test results because of confidentiality requirements.
The BBBofC reportedly conducted a hearing before the fight, which included UKAD, and Whyte was cleared to participate in the fight against Rivas without Rivas’ knowledge.
Whyte isn’t the only fighter on the card to have failed a drug test. Wach, Alexander Povetkin (who takes on Michael Hunter) and Eric Molina (who faces Filip Hrgovic) also have tested positive for banned substances.
Ruiz-Joshua II will stream on DAZN.