British boxer Dillian Whyte is humbled by a gesture from the Samoan community, which presented him with a Kukui-nut necklace after his unanimous-points win over Joseph Parker.
The two combatants fought out a brutal 12-round contest, with both spending time on the canvas throughout the 36-minute war.
Appearing on Sky Sports UK, Whyte sported the traditional Samoan necklace, which he said was given to him as a sign of respect.
"The Samoans gave it to me after beating Joseph Parker," Whyte said. "It's their way of honouring me for beating their champion.
"I gave him one of my t-shirts and he gave me one of his. He is a nice guy – he fought a hell of a fight.
"Joseph is young, tough and really fit. It was backwards and forwards the whole time.
"There is so much respect there now. I have a lot for respect for Joseph Parker."
Whyte said it was the toughest fight of his 24-fight career, stating that his experience of being hurt in the past paid dividends, when the Kiwi battered him in the final frame.
"It was a real good learning fight for me. I probably learned more from that fight than I have in my whole career.
"I got hurt. In the past, I have tried to fight through, it but I knew the right thing to do was take a knee.”
Whyte is now set for a much bigger stage and payday, most likely in 2019, against Anthony Joshua or Deontay Wilder.
Both heavyweight champions appear to have their itineraries already mapped out this year, with Joshua set to take on Alexander Povetkin in September and Wilder negotiating to defend his WBC title against Tyson Fury in December.
Whyte plans to stay active, stating that he is willing to fight anyone in the lead-up to a well-deserved title shot.
"I want to fight Anthony Joshua again," he said. "I want to fight Deontay Wilder, but if those fights aren't around, I’ll fight anyone.
"I have been through the mill and I have done everything asked of me to get a world title shot.
"Now it's time for me to get what I deserve."
Newshub.
