A recent, eleventh-hour rearrangement of Matchroom’s Liverpool boxing event has unexpectedly elevated Ben Whittaker to the main event slot. This sudden change, however, has triggered an undeniable question among boxing observers: why was David Morrell, a highly-regarded contender, not placed directly in line to face Whittaker?
The need for this card alteration arose after Callum Smith was forced to withdraw from his scheduled interim WBO light heavyweight title clash due to an injury sustained during training. While Whittaker steps into a more prominent role, the decision to seemingly bypass Morrell for such a high-profile opportunity has fueled speculation about whether Whittaker is receiving a degree of “protection” from more challenging opponents early in his career.
