IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois is 61 days away from meeting WBA, WBC, and WBO champ Oleksandr Usyk in a rematch for the undisputed championship on July 19th at Wembley Stadium in London, England. During a recent face-off to promote the event, Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs) looked noticeably intimidated by Usyk.
Dubois’ Confidence Appears Shaken
The look on Daniel’s face said it all. He knows he can’t win, and his career is heading toward trouble. A second loss to Usyk will unravel everything the British fighter has done with his pseudo-rebuild job in the last two years. Returning from a second defeat to Oleksandr may be impossible, especially if he quits again. Fans would never forget a third defeat of that kind.
You could tell that Dubois, 27, doesn’t have the same self-confidence going into this fight as he did in his last three contests against Anthony Joshua, Filip Hrgovic, and Jarrell Miller. Daniel quit in the ninth when the going got tough the last time he fought Usyk in 2019 in Wroclaw, Poland.
Can Dubois Overcome “Quitter” Tag?
When Usyk started putting it on Dubois in the ninth, he bowed out meekly, showing he’s not a warrior. This was the second time that Dubois had quit in a fight. The boxing public stuck him with a quitter label, and it’s still there.
Although he’s won his last three fights, he wasn’t facing world-class opposition. Joshua and Miller are both washed. Hrgovic had never been tested before, and he’d gotten by with beating second-level fighters to build his resume.
Usyk wants this fight to reclaim his undisputed heavyweight championship, making him a three-time winner of the four belts. He needs those four belts to create more fan interest for a potential trilogy match against Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. It’s less important to the casual boxing fan if Usyk goes into those fights as the undisputed champion, but the ultra-hardcore people care about that.
“I don’t particularly care about responding to anything about what he says about Daniel Dubois, considering when Daniel challenged AJ, he talked about him going to the hospital on a stretcher in an ambulance. So, I wouldn’t dignify anything he says about Daniel Dubois,” said promoter Frank Warren to Secondsout, talking about commentator Tony Bellew. “I jut think he’s a nasty b***** at times. That’s it.”
.@usykaa vs. @DynamiteDubois for ALL the marbles 👑#UsykDubois2 | July 19 | Live worldwide only on DAZN
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) May 19, 2025
Last Updated on 05/19/2025
