Daniel Dubois did not have to dethrone anyone to become a world heavyweight champion. So he has something to prove when he makes his first title defense before one of the biggest crowds in British boxing history.
If he successfully defends his IBF belt tomorrow by beating fellow Briton Anthony Joshua in front of 96,000 fans at Wembley Stadium, Dubois might just transform himself into boxing’s next big thing.
“I’m getting used to the idea that I’m the world champion, but I think I need to legitimize it by beating AJ [Anthony Joshua],” Dubois said. “That’s the way I do it and cement my name, cement my legacy in the sport of boxing.”
Photo: Reuters
The 27-year-old Dubois was awarded the belt in late June after then-undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk of Ukraine relinquished it.
He knows that most boxing fans — the British ones in particular — want to see Joshua become a three-time champion to set up a long-anticipated showdown with Tyson Fury.
However, the hard-punching Dubois — a south London native who has been boxing since the age of 7 — has plans of his own.
“Make him quit, break him down, unleash hell on him,” Dubois said of his strategy for fight night.
Nicknamed “Dynamite,” the 6-foot-5 (1.95m) Dubois has had obstacles to overcome on his path to Wembley.
He hopes to make the 34-year-old Joshua quit, but Dubois himself had to answer questions about quitting after he took a knee and was counted out in the 10th round against Joe Joyce on November 2020.
That was his first professional loss.
Dubois’ left eye had been swollen shut — there was an orbital bone fracture and nerve damage.
He bounced back by winning four straight bouts to earn a title shot at Usyk last summer.
The fight was held in Poland, where many Ukrainians have taken refuge because of Russia’s invasion of their country.
With huge support from his compatriots, Usyk stopped Dubois in the ninth round. Boxing is never far from controversy and this fight had its share: Dubois had dropped the champion in the fifth round, but the referee ruled it a low blow and allowed Usyk several minutes to recover.
Since then, Dubois responded with two knockout victories. Despite being comfortably ahead of 333-pound Jarrell Miller, Dubois piled on the pressure in the final round, getting the stoppage in the final seconds of the bout.
Dubois bloodied Filip Hrgovic early and stopped the Croatian in the eighth round.
The impressive win over Hrgovic in early June gave Dubois the “interim” title weeks before Usyk relinquished the belt. It also means 20 of his 21 wins have come via knockouts. The only time he went to points was six years ago in his eighth professional fight.
Back in 2017, it was then 27-year-old Joshua who spectacularly knocked out Wladimir Klitschko in a title fight at Wembley in front of 90,000 fans.
Dubois says it is his turn.
“This is my time now, and I’m ready to take it with both hands, show the world what I’m all about,” he said, pointing to a Usyk rematch as his next goal even though the Ukrainian has talked about returning to cruiserweight after his Dec. 21 rematch with Tyson Fury.
He also wants to make his family proud. His father, Dave Dubois, raised 11 children in a household where sports and music dominated, but Dubois said he does not play any instruments or sing. His younger sister Caroline Dubois is also a successful pro boxer.
Officially, it is the first time they square off, but Daniel Dubois and Joshua had a much-debated sparring session about a decade ago. It seems clear that Dubois caught Joshua — who two years earlier had won gold for Britain at the London Olympics — with a good punch, but beyond that, it is just rumors.
Promoter Frank Warren has said that sparring session led him to sign Dubois.
“Sparring is sparring, this is a fight. It bears no relevance to today,” Dubois said. “It was good for me at the time, but I’m a new man, a new fighter now. I’ve put that behind me. I’m the man of the future.”
He suspects most of the crowd — and perhaps many of those watching on DAZN’s streaming service — would be on Joshua’s side.
“They probably will be overlooking me,” he said. “It’s up to me to prove them wrong.”
Manchester United on Tuesday confirmed Michael Carrick as interim manager until the end of the season, tasking him with leading the Red Devils back into the UEFA Champions League. “Having the responsibility to lead Manchester United is an honor,” said Carrick, 44, who won 12 major trophies in his 12-year playing career at United. The former midfielder previously had an unbeaten three-game stint as caretaker boss at Old Trafford in 2021. Carrick then took on his first permanent managerial role at second-tier Middlesbrough in October 2022 and was sacked in June last year after the club finished 10th in the
Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg on Wednesday was ruled out for the second half of their 118-109 loss to the Denver Nuggets after the No. 1 pick sprained his left ankle in the first half. Flagg was called for a foul while defending against Peyton Watson and turned the ankle as he fell to the floor with 6 minutes, 1 second left in the second quarter. Flagg limped to the bench and continued to the locker room, but returned for the final 2 minutes, 35 seconds before the break. The 19-year-old did not come out for the second half before the announcement that
Yassine Bounou on Wednesday saved two penalties, while Youssef en-Nesyri netted the decisive spot-kick as hosts Morocco secured a 4-2 shoot-out victory over Nigeria following a 0-0 draw in a tense Africa Cup of Nations semi-final in Rabat. Morocco, seeking their first continental title in 50 years, are to face 2021 winners Senegal in Sunday’s decider in Rabat, while Nigeria take on Egypt in the third-place playoff tomorrow. The 120 minutes before the shoot-out had few clear-cut chances for either side, but it was Morocco who created more opportunities, although they were denied by some fine saves from Nigeria goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali. Nigeria
James Harden on Friday scored 31 points and came up big in overtime to help the Los Angeles Clippers erase a double-digit deficit on the way to a 121-117 NBA victory over the Toronto Raptors. Harden scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Clippers pushed their wining steak to five games despite the absence of star Kawhi Leonard with a sprained right ankle. The Clippers trailed by 11 entering the fourth quarter, but Harden drilled a pair of free-throws with 1:24 left in regulation to tie it and after misses from both teams, they went to
RSS