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SugarHill Steward, the nephew of Hall of Fame trainer Emanuel Steward, recently spoke about his new fighter Ben Whittaker.
Whittaker recently signed a long-term deal with BOXXER and was due to make his professional debut on July 2nd on the undercard of Hughie Fury vs. Michael Hunter. The show has been cancelled due to Fury falling ill.
The American trainer has been in Birmingham with his fighter and said the following:
"Ben's ability to learn has impressed me. It makes it fun and interesting for me because I can create so many different things and situations for him. I can use different learning tools with him."
When asked if Whittaker will successfully transition from amateur boxing to professional boxing, he stated:
"He's already transitioned. It's taken one week and we've already transitioned. Things are moving fast. I think he can be move fast at professional due to his learning ability and talent."
Check out the full interview below:
Whittaker is 25 years old and will feature in the light-heavyweight division.
Everyone saw the influence Sky Sports had on Anthony Joshua and Whittaker will hope the network can have the same positive impact on his career. Joshua developed into a pay-per-view draw and became a global superstar. He was essentially the poster boy for Sky Sports until this year.
SugarHill Steward compares Ben Whittaker to Roy Jones Jr.
SugarHill Steward has likened his new fighter's talent to Roy Jones Jr. He believes Whittaker has the ability to transition from an amateur into a professional superstar like Roy Jones Jr. did. There is great excitement in the boxing world to see how Whittaker performs as a professional. The 25-year-old fighter caught the attention of many promoters after winning a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics.
Whittaker is managed by Anthony Joshua's management company '258 MGT' and Joshua has also spoken highly of him.
Teaming up with SugarHill Steward is a shrewd move as we saw the positive impact the American had on Tyson Fury. The Kronk Gym is known for knockouts, and this was proven when Fury knocked out Deontay Wilder. This is an element of Whittaker's game that needs working on as SugarHill Steward jokingly stated he has "pillow fists."
However, the American is confident this can be fixed, given Whittaker's great desire to learn.
