Anthony Yarde says Ben Whittaker's team told his camp Whittaker needs another year

Yarde, a three-time world title challenger, said he would take the fight if it were offered to him tomorrow. Whittaker became the IBF's mandatory challenger by beating Conor Wallace on 3 October.

Anthony Yarde has told talkSPORT Boxing he would take a fight with Ben Whittaker if it were put to him tomorrow, and that Whittaker's camp put off an earlier approach from his side.

"You get two people in the same weight class, they've both got a bit of a name. The name's always going to get thrown at each other," Yarde said. "Personally, we tried to get that fight then his team came back and said he needs another year, he's still in that stage where he's leaning and he's growing and these kind of things. If that fight was put to me tomorrow, I'd take it, for obvious reasons."

Whittaker beat Conor Wallace on a unanimous decision at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham on 3 October to become mandatory challenger for the IBF light-heavyweight title held by Dmitry Bivol, though Wallace hurt him in the 12th round. He is now 13-0-1: Whittaker survives late Wallace onslaught.

His promoter, Eddie Hearn, said that night that Whittaker needs another fight first. "We are mandatory for the winner of Callum Smith against Dmitry Bivol. But we need another fight," Hearn told iFL TV: Hearn on Whittaker's next step. Tony Bellew made the same point to iFL TV: "Nobody goes from Conor Wallace to Dmitry Bivol": Bellew on Whittaker and Bivol.

Yarde has challenged for the world light-heavyweight title three times. The most recent was a defeat by David Benavidez for the WBC and WBA belts in Riyadh last November.

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