Dillian Whyte drives 40 hours to Portugal for heavyweight clash with Alexander Povetkin which could be postponed

Boxing and most other sports have been hit by postponements and cancellations

Dillian Whyte has undertaken a 40-hour drive to Portugal for a training camp ahead of his heavyweight clash with Alexander Povetkin – a bout which could be postponed this week.

The Briton is slated to fight Russia’s Povetkin on May 2 in Manchester but the contest is in doubt due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Whyte’s promoter Eddie Hearn said in an Instagram Live video on Monday that a decision on the fight will be made this week.

The video also featured Hearn having a chat with Whyte, and the 31-year-old fighter said: “I’m in Portugal, (on a) training camp.

“It’s a little bit of planning. I had to drive 40 hours non-stop from my house straight to here. I drove because I brought the dogs with me, so I didn’t want to fly.

“It’s quiet but there’s food on the shelves and I have a good set-up here. It’s a good base. We thought about it, we planned and we came here and it’s good.”

Whyte added: “The mindset is my date is not cancelled, my date is still going ahead, so I’m training. I’m a professional, I’m trying to be professional and keep training, and trying to stay positive.

“It’s very important to show people in this time that it’s important to train, to get on with life the best you can in these kinds of situations, because it is easy to panic and just shut down. I’m just trying to show as much positivity as I can.”

The British Boxing Board of Control on Monday said the suspension of all events under its jurisdiction remains in place until the end of April, at which point the position will be reviewed.

“We will continue to follow Government and the medical authorities’ advice and keep the situation under review,” a statement read.

PA