Tony Bellew was once again impressed with Ben Whittaker as the Wolverhampton man made light work of Braian Suarez in Liverpool.
The next stop for Whittaker will be New York City when he makes his America debut on the undercard of Xander Zayas’ world title defence against Jaron Ennis, which is set to be one of the biggest shows of the year on June 27.
After that, it is hoped that Whittaker will be able to be fast-tracked towards world level and with the UK the home of several top light-heavyweights, Whittaker will not have to look far for a severe examination in his home country.
Callum Smith is currently the number one light-heavyweight domestically, but he is set to renew his rivalry with David Morrell after their scheduled fight set to take place on the show Whittaker won on was postponed after Smith suffered an injury.
Joshua Buatsi, Anthony Yarde, Willy Hutchinson, Zach Parker and Craig Richards are all in the mix as potential Whittaker opponents at some point in 2026 and Bellew has identified two of those names as suitable tests for Whittaker.
Speaking immediately after Whittaker’s win, Bellew said Yarde and Richards should be two names that Whittaker’s team could be looking at.
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