Ricky Hatton: Tyson Fury should avoid trying to go to war with dangerous Dillian Whyte in their ‘Battle of Britain’

In his first column of 2022, the British boxing legend breaks down Fury vs Whyte and Eubank Jr vs Williams while also previewing a big month for Fightzone.

Tyson Fury vs Dillian Whyte is finally set and I think it is certainly one of the biggest British title fights in history.

It’s our biggest heavyweight fight since Lennox Lewis vs Frank Bruno went to war back in 1993, 100 per cent. We spent a lot of time waiting for Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua and that might be the one a lot of people want more than anything. But when you look at world heavyweight title picture, this is another huge one.

I think Dillian Whyte poses a similar threat to Deontay Wilder against Fury. Although Wilder is a lot taller and has a more slender build, there are a lot of similarities in their styles. Their shots are wide arching shots, they come around the houses and come from wide. They put everything into them.

The tactics Fury used for the second Wilder fight were bang on and he used them again for the third fight. Since he has linked up with SugarHill Stewart and started fighting with that Kronk style, he has turned into a 6ft 10in Rocky Marciano. It has worked. He is going to war with everyone and it is getting the results.

I’m delighted for Dillian – the poor sod have been waiting for ever and a day for his chance. But I think it is a fight Tyson can make as hard or as easy as he wants.

It all depends on how he comes out in those opening rounds. If Tyson tries to outbox him, he will do just that and could have a very comfortable night. But if he wants to go toe-to-toe and have a war, he is handing Dillian his best chance of winning that fight.

A bit of the old Tyson Fury might be what is needed. Slow him down and break him down a bit.  We’ve seen