Ben Whittaker reveals boxer who inspired flashy showboating style – and it’s not Prince Naseem Hamed

Despite the stylistic similarities, Ben Whittaker insists Prince Naseem Hamed is not his main inspiration.

Whittaker is seemingly destined to become British boxing’s next big star once Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury hang up their gloves.

Ben Whittaker has showboated his way to 8-0 as a professionalGetty

His flashy ring entrances and flamboyant showboating have captivated the British public, with the brash boxer boasting over 3 million followers on Instagram after just eight professional outings.

Clips of him taunting his opponents mid-fight have garnered tens of millions of views online and have led to comparisons with the great Prince Naseem.

Like Whittaker, Naz was noted for his unorthodox style and extravagant showmanship.

But despite paying homage to the former featherweight world champion by emulating his ring walk against Kevin Kelley in 1997, Whittaker claims he didn’t watch the British boxing icon growing up.

Speaking exclusively to talkSPORT.com, he said: “To be honest, I never watched Nas until I did the Adidas collab and I thought ‘Oh, you know, Adidas collab. What can I do?’

“And if I’m being honest I don’t really like that style, I don’t really like the flash style, I like real true boxers.

“A lot of people say ‘Oh Emmanuel Augustus’ but I didn’t watch him either.”

He then revealed which boxer he watched most when moulding his style.

“My actual favourite boxer is Mario Kindelan,” Whittaker added. “He beat Amir Khan in the Olympic final and he’s a through-and-through boxer who did everything beautifully.

“And for me, that is the art of boxing and then when you go to professionals of course there is Thomas Hearn’s, the Pernell Whittaker’s.

Whittaker has drawn comparisons to Prince Naseem HamedGetty

But Mario Kindelan is his biggest inspirationGETTY

“I’ve also been watching Salvador Sanchez. Those are true boxers and for me, that is who I idolise myself off.”

Kindelan is one of the greatest amateur boxers of all time.

The Cuban sensation compiled a stunning 358-22 record during his time at the top and won two gold medals at the Olympics.

After topping the podium at Sydney 2000, Kindelan became a double Olympic champion four years later by overcoming Britain’s Amir Khan by a margin of 30-22 in Athens.

Besides Khan, Kindelan also holds wins over future world champions Felix Trinidad, Miguel Cotto, and Andreas Kotelnik in the amateurs.

As Kindelan competed during a time in which professional boxing was banned in Cuba, he never turned over.

However, his incredible accomplishments which also include three World Championship golds, two Pan American Games golds and three Boxing World Cup golds speak for themselves.

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