Ben Whittaker takes his US debut in New York on the Xander Zayas vs Jaron Ennis bill, and the unbeaten British contender says a collision with Joshua Buatsi could be close after his WBC ranking momentum—while promoter Eddie Hearn maps a potential path to the l
Ben Whittaker steps into the American ring with one clear idea in his head: whoever’s next.
The unbeaten British contender makes his US debut against Richard Rivera on the Xander Zayas vs Jaron Ennis bill in New York in the early hours of Sunday morning. Whittaker’s talk of timing isn’t idle confidence—it’s a plan built around rankings. domestic rivalries. and the quickest route to a world title fight.
“I think me and Buatsi are kind of close,” Whittaker told Sky Sports. “I think we’re two and three in the WBC [rankings], so something like that could happen.”
He added that another potential pathway runs through past results: “And Willy, I’ve beaten him before in the amateurs, so it’d be good to get another win over him in the pros.”
For Whittaker, the opponent list is ultimately secondary to progression. “But for me, it’s whoever’s next, whoever makes sense, whoever’s going to get me to where I need to get to.”
Eddie Hearn, his promoter, sees the next stretch as a stepping-stone toward the sport’s top tier. He believes Whittaker is “three fights” away from challenging the light-heavyweight world title holders. Hearn’s outline includes a possible big domestic clash later this year. with Whittaker potentially taking on either fellow Englishman Joshua Buatsi or Scotland’s Willy Hutchinson.
World title scenes are also shifting around him. Dmitry Bivol—the WBA, WBO and IBF champion—returned with a points win over Michael Eifert last month. WBC belt holder David Benavidez stepped up to cruiserweight to defeat Gilberto Ramirez in a recent world title fight.
Asked which champion he’d want, Whittaker didn’t mince words. “Whoever’s got the most belts and whoever’s got the most money,” he said. “But as of now. Benavidez has gone up to cruiserweight. so if you had to say someone. Bivol. of course. he’s got the most belts as well. But I think the fight that would make a lot of money – the way it’s going – is me versus Benavidez.”.
Behind the scenes, Hearn is also plotting the domestic calendar. Outlining the plan for Whittaker, he told Sky Sports: “Against those guys, probably another three fights. They are the elite of the elite, and when you fight them, you’ve got to be ready.”
Hearn’s timeline includes a fight on Saturday night, when Whittaker will headline in October against a big domestic name, followed by one more bout—“and then he’ll be ready for anybody in the division.”
That sets up a second storyline: Whittaker’s relationship with Londoner Zak Chelli. who claims he floored him in a past sparring session. Whittaker pushed back hard, insisting Chelli isn’t competition. “They all call me out. they all call me out. but all I’m going to say is. when we were kids. who got picked for the Commonwealth [Games]?. Your man, himself,” Whittaker said.
He continued: “Who got picked for Team GB over him? Your man, himself. Who went to the Olympics over me or him? Your man, himself. So, all I got to say is, results don’t lie, baby.”
Then he added a sharper jab at the comparison game: “And they’re all calling me out, but he kind of knows his place.”
On the undercard’s bigger picture, promoter Eddie Hearn has also urged Jaron Ennis to make a statement in the main event against Zayas. Hearn said a dominant win could set up an undisputed unification path—first by chasing world-title consolidation, then moving between weight classes.
“If he wins this fight on Saturday and becomes unified world champion, there are two other belt holders, Josh Kelly and Sebastian Fundora,” Hearn said. “He’ll want to chase those fights.”
Hearn expects Ennis to try to become undisputed, then move to 160 lbs and later 168 lbs, saying: “So, yeah, I’m really excited to see him triumph.”
For Whittaker, the US debut is the next step—but his words suggest it may also be the beginning of a clearer collision course with the domestic names waiting near the top of the rankings. In the light-heavyweight world he’s trying to enter, “whoever’s next” can arrive quickly.
Ben Whittaker Joshua Buatsi Richard Rivera Eddie Hearn WBC rankings Dmitry Bivol David Benavidez Jaron Ennis Xander Zayas Zak Chelli