Fabio Wardley didn’t hesitate to call for a rematch with Daniel Dubois following his loss in the first fight earlier this year.
The Ipswich man’s first defence of his WBO heavyweight title didn’t go as planned. Despite a good start, Dubois’s power eventually told and had Wardley on the back foot, unable to land his own shots and mostly covering up, who his why the referee stepped in at the end of the 11th to call a halt to proceedings.
Wardley was taken to hospital following the fight and many questioned whether a rematch was necessary given the nature of the defeat.
Speaking to The Boxing Show, Wardley was asked what went through his mind when considering whether to take the rematch, and admits he was never in any doubt.
“There was no real process. I made the call within two or three days. By the time my other eye opened and I could see all the buttons I was looking at the phone to make sure I was dialling the right number. I made the call.
“I know there was a lot of talk about having a rest and recovery and time out and this and that but where do you draw the line? How much rest then? How much rest is sufficient to appease the public? Is it six months, is it nine months, am I supposed to have a year out of my career? Opportunities are in front of me and I know how I feel going into it, and I feel great.”
Wardley’s nose has often been broken, and fights and his face turns into a bloody mess. More than once he has looked to be struggling but has pulled out a big shot to rescue a win when the cards might be going against him.
He will be hoping to avoid that situation this time around, having admitted he was too “single-minded” last time when he had Dubois on the canvas in the early rounds in the first fight in April.
