Newly-elevated IBF World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Dubois puts his belt on the line against Anthony Joshua next month.
The two Brits have both been beaten by Oleksandr Usyk in recent times but benefitted when he vacated the IBF strap due to a contractual rematch with Tyson Fury.
It means on September 21 there will either be a changing of the heavyweight guard on these shores in favour of Dubois, or ‘AJ’ will become a three-time champion.
Both men have been on quite a journey to get here, Joshua the much more experienced but Dubois having come through two bruising losses to Usyk and Joe Joyce in which fans and pundits questioned his determination.
One man he showed impressive heart against was Kevin Lerena, suffering three knockdowns in the first round as well as an injured knee before rallying and score a third round stoppage.
Speaking to Seconds Out, Lerena said he had seen his former opponent mature.
“I don’t think he’s a quitter. Maybe when the going gets tough, he’s come on a bit. He’s gotten older, his grit threshold has increased. I caught him and he went down, but at the end of the day we’re fighters and when we get caught we get caught. How we react to it is different in the moment. You saw AJ go down against Andy Ruiz. He rallied back and then beat Ruiz [in the rematch.] It’s heavyweight boxing. The guys are big enough, strong enough and hit hard enough to do real damage … [Dubois’] will to win is there.”
The South African southpaw – who has picked up two wins and a loss since the Dubois fight – couldn’t seperate the two, but does see a knockout on the cards.
“It’s a great fight for the public. I can’t stick my neck out – it could be each of them go down at any given time in the fight and then somebody will be laid out. I don’t know who it’s gonna be, but I do believe it’s gonna be an exciting fight and I think it’s gonna be a barnburner from the first bell.”
Joshua and Dubois top an impressive card at Wembley Stadium on September 21.
