Tempers have already flared between Daniel Dubois and Oleksandr Usyk ahead of their rematch.
Dubois and Usyk will meet in an undisputed showdown at Wembley Stadium in July, nearly two years on from their original meeting which saw the Ukrainian win by ninth round stoppage following a controversial moment earlier in the fight.
It appeared that Dubois had dropped Usyk with a body shot in the fifth round, but it was ruled a low blow and Usyk was given five minutes to recover, though to this day Dubois insists it was a legal shot.
That began the bad blood between the two men, which has only increased in recent months, with Usyk claiming the Brit was disrespectful when he entered the ring following Usyk’s victory over Tyson Fury in December.
It is clear that the issues are still in place, as during their promotional activity at Wembley to announce the fight this week, Dubois shoved Usyk during their first face-off, resulting in security jumping in to prevent any further incident from taking place.
It’s already kicking off at Wembley Stadium 👀🍿
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Both men have made their intentions clear ahead of the rematch, with Usyk first declaring that Dubois has simply been looking after his IBF title ahead of the undisputed clash.
“I’m grateful to God for the opportunity to once again fight for the undisputed championship. Thank you, Daniel, for taking care of my IBF belt – now I want it back.”
Dubois has other ideas though, as he says that competing in front of his home supporters will prove to be the difference in the rematch.
“This is the fight I wanted and demanded and now I get my chance for revenge against Oleksandr Usyk. I should have won the first fight and was denied by the judgement of the referee, so I will make no mistake this time around in front of my people at the national stadium in my home city.
“I am a superior and more dangerous fighter now and Usyk will find this out for himself on July 19. I would like to thank my promoter Frank for making this happen for me and I intend to repay him by becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.”
With a press conference between the two men set for Tuesday, even more antics could take place ahead of this summer’s rematch.
