Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois share the ring once more on July 19.
The heavyweights first met back in August 2023 when Dubois was still very much on the rise and Usyk had already twice beaten unified champion Anthony Joshua.
‘DDD’ managed to have his rival down on the canvas from a shot, though it was controversially ruled low and the Ukrainian was given plenty of time to recover. Come the ninth round, Usyk landed a solid jab, which was enough for Dubois to be knocked down and not recover.
Since then, Dubois has put together three knockout wins against Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Joshua to go into the rematch in good form.
Speaking to The 3 Knockdown Rule podcast, Usyk was clear who had hit him the hardest in his career so far, and he named the second man he faced up at heavyweight.
“Toughest fight? it was [Fury]. Biggest punch? No. Because Derek Chisora, very tough guy. [One punch landed] on the gloves and I said, ‘Oh my God.’ Like a baseball bat.”
Usyk and Chisora fought in October 2020 and though ‘Del Boy’ lost a unanimous decision, he gave the Ukrainian plenty of trouble with his constant pressure and aggression.
Whoever wins the rematch between Usyk and Dubois could be forced to fight Chisora, who is currently the IBF mandatory challenger and looking to set up his 50th and final fight.
