Rumoured Oleksandr Usyk opponent Daniel Dubois hints that fight is on

Dubois has promised to hit the unbeaten Ukrainian like ‘nobody has’

Alex Pattle
Combat Sports Correspondent
Tuesday 04 April 2023 09:37 BST
Comments
Moment Anthony Joshua is declared decision winner against Jermaine Franklin

Your support helps us to tell the story

This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.

The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.

Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.

Daniel Dubois has vowed to hit Oleksandr Usyk like ‘nobody has’, after the WBA ordered a title fight between the heavyweights.

Usyk was in talks with Tyson Fury over a bout to crown an undisputed champion later this month, but negotiations collapsed in March, leading Usyk’s promoter to suggest that Dubois would be next for the Ukrainian.

Usyk, 36, holds the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO titles, and Dubois is the mandatory challenger for the WBA belt. On Monday (3 April), the WBA officially ordered Usyk to defend his titles against the Briton.

“Time to get what I’ve been working for my whole life,” Dubois, 25, tweeted.

“@usykaa you are a good champion but nobody has hit you like I will. See you soon. #AndTheNew.”

Olympic gold medalist Usyk is unbeaten as a professional, with his last two wins having come against Anthony Joshua. Usyk outpointed “AJ” in 2021 to become unified champion and retained the titles against the Briton with another decision win last August.

Meanwhile, Dubois has won four fights in a row since suffering the sole defeat of his pro career in 2020, when he was stopped by compatriot Joe Joyce. Last time out, Dubois beat Kevin Lerena in December, fighting through a knee injury to finish his opponent in Round 3.

With that result, Dubois moved to 19-1 (18 knockouts). Meanwhile, Usyk’s record stands at 20-0 (13 KOs). The southpaw previously reigned as the only undisputed cruiserweight champion of the four-belt era.

Click here to subscribe to The Independent’s Sport YouTube channel for all the latest sports videos.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in