Tony Bellew knows what it’s like to face Oleksandr Usyk more than most, having lost by knockout to the Ukrainian back in 2018. Does he think Daniel Dubois will suffer the same fate in this weekend’s undisputed heavyweight championship fight?
Usyk and Dubois meet for the second time after Usyk won by KO in their August 2023 fight. Dubois has grown massively in confidence and believes he has the power to be the first man to stop the two-weight undisputed champion.
Speaking on Coral, Bellew used his experience of fighting the great Ukrainian to make a specific prediction, believing his old foe will have to come through major adversity, including a knockdown, before taking over and ending the fight inside the distance.
“Even though Daniel is riding the crest of a huge wave and is the best form of his career with wins over Anthony Joshua, Filip Hrgovic, Jarrell Miller, all back-to-back, I still think he’s going to lose to Oleksandr Usyk. I think Usyk’s gonna ride it out.
“I think it’s gonna be a bit of a rough start, Daniel Dubois will come out like a house on fire. I even think he might be the first person to ever drop Oleksandr Usyk. His confidence is that high. He might really get to him, but then I believe Oleksandr will use his ring savvy, his knowledge, his feet and his brains, and I think he’ll overcome Daniel Dubois and stop him in between rounds 8 and 12. You know what? I’ll go 9 and 12, the championship rounds is where I think Oleksandr will have too much for Daniel.”
Should Dubois upset the odds at Wembley Stadium, he will become the division’s undisputed champion at the age of 27, very much signalling a new reign in the heavyweight ranks. If Usyk manages to do the double, as he has done against Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury, most will look for him to retire on top as the very best of a generation.
