Usyk / Dubois 2: Can Daniel Dubois Seize The Crown This Summer?

By Geoff Cater: July has all the time been the month for British sport: Wimbledon, the British Grand Prix, the Open golf – however the rematch between Oleksander Usyk and Daniel Dubois makes this summer season actually particular.

Not solely is it the primary heavyweight world championship to be held in Britain unified by all 4 main belts – the challenger, Dubois (22-2), is a Brit. Hardly one thing that may be repeated yearly.

Not sufficient? Dubois faces an all-time nice within the champion, Usyk (23-0). For these of you preferring unambiguous sporting legacies, if Usyk prevails at Wembley Stadium on 19 July, he can have achieved the next: beginner report: 335-15; Olympic gold; unified cruiserweight world champion; and unified heavyweight world champion. He can have crushed each main heavyweight rival not as soon as, however twice (Anthony Joshua; Tyson Fury; Daniel Dubois – all of whom simply occur to be British). And he can have completed the skilled portion undefeated. Not a lot as a knockdown (nicely, perhaps one – extra on that to come back).

The sheer cleanliness of that potential report is sort of sufficient to make you forsake patriotism for one evening. But when the burden of his résumé weighs on Usyk, he definitely doesn’t present it.

“Yeah, no drawback,” Usyk mentioned with a shrug after being accosted within the ring by an embarrassed-looking Dubois following the Fury rematch. His trademark nonchalance was justified – he’d crushed Dubois in August 2023, between his bouts with Joshua and the Gypsy King.

Suffocatingly elegant, Usyk compelled the younger Londoner to take a knee figuratively and actually (in each the eighth and ninth rounds). The second time, Dubois waited out the depend earlier than rising. It strengthened the notion of a fighter whose resolve would collapse when it mattered most, a notion which started together with his first defeat to fellow Englishman, Joe Joyce.

There are two main causes, nevertheless, why the rematch is extra compelling than the primary struggle would recommend: Dubois knocked Usyk down with a punch that was controversially dominated a low blow, and the challenger comes into the return recent from demolishing Anthony Joshua in 5 rounds.

First Defeat: The Path to Poland

Previous to the Joyce defeat, every part had been within the ascendency for Dubois. At simply 23 years previous, he’d turn out to be British and Commonwealth champion, racking up a report of 15-0. The ‘Juggernaut’ was a serious take a look at for the vacant European title.

Dubois and Joyce had been stylistic twins: front-foot boxer-punchers with big physiques. While Dubois had his moments, he had no reply to Joyce’s primary model and work price, fortified by his wince-inducingly freakish chin (hearsay has it 5 instances the bone density of a mean man) – which he seemingly had no qualms about utilizing as a defensive technique.

By spherical 5, Dubois’ mere mortal bone density lastly conceded to Joyce’s metronomic jab. Dubois kneeled and was counted out. The predictable criticism adopted: he’d give up.

Swallowed it. It was later revealed he’d suffered a fractured orbital bone, nerve harm, and retinal bleeding, which supplied some belated vindication.

Testomony to the younger man’s character, Dubois returned to the ring simply six months later and it took solely three fights and 7 rounds to select up the WBA “Common” World title in opposition to American Trevor Bryan.

His first defence in opposition to Kevin Lerena nearly led to catastrophe – Dubois was down thrice within the first spherical and appeared on the verge of being stopped. Weak spot in his knee ligaments, fairly than glass in his chin. There could possibly be no doubting his fortitude this time – he took out the South African within the third.

Even so, surgical procedures and just one camp with new coach Don Charles (changing Shane McGuigan) was hardly best preparation to face a generational nice in Usyk.

Controversial First Struggle

Held in Wrocław, Poland, it was a homecoming of kinds for Usyk in lieu of a war-torn Ukraine. In navy phrases, Dubois was seen as a ‘gentle goal’ – a greener model of Joshua, who had twice been schooled by Usyk.

A downpour early within the struggle, a half-full stadium, and even the all-white color scheme – canvas, ropes, and the champion’s shorts and gloves – created a wierd, claustrophobic environment.

Usyk’s model is misleading, nothing significantly dramatic about it on the floor, however near-perfect footwork facilitates fixed motion: circling, pivoting, gliding out and in of vary; all of it creates angles which confuse and frustrate. His southpaw jab is sharp, and his lead left hand controls his opponent’s guard and disrupts their rhythm. He then varies hand velocity and makes use of feints and degree adjustments to disguise energy punches.

Like many an opponent earlier than him, Dubois was systematically dismantled and pushed to exhaustion – the profitable knockdown scored with a single jab. Not that Dubois was with out success – particularly a pointy double jab adopted by his dynamite proper cross. Then there was spherical 5. A counter uppercut landed on Usyk’s belt line and put the champion on his bottom and exhaling in ache for over three minutes. The legality of that precise level on the belt line can be later topic to fierce debate.

Put up struggle, seemingly on the behest of promoter Frank Warren, a crushed and demoralised Dubois insisted he must be the champion with all of the conviction of a hostage video. His group had been extra forthright on the press convention to announce the rematch, which was much less typical argy-bargy and extra photographic evaluation (it could but show unwise for Dubois’ coach to name Usyk a cheat to his face).

In fact, all of it overlooks the query: if the referee had began, might Usyk have crushed the depend? Dubois won’t ever know the reply, however the query will give him confidence. Even when the shot was unlawful, it was not low sufficient to have an effect on Usyk’s virility, and physique pictures do appear to be one of many Ukrainian’s few vulnerabilities. In fact, Usyk is just not a heavyweight, he’s a cruiserweight of such mastery he grew to become champion of the marquee division. For all the benefits his smaller body gives by way of velocity and agility, he can’t slip his physique half an inch in the identical method he can his head – at instances, he merely has to soak up the great forces a contemporary powerhouse can produce.

The closest Usyk has appeared to defeat is when compelled to backpedal within the center rounds of the second Joshua struggle and the primary Fury struggle. There’s no denying it: he has been visibly damage within the heavyweight division in a method he by no means was as a cruiserweight.

For all his profound technical talent, it’s maybe his savvy potential to navigate these momentary crises, preserve a stoic expression till his head has cleared, that’s the reason he nonetheless holds all of the belts.

Usyk overcomes his opponent’s momentum together with his unbeaten trinity: composure; conditioning; counters. Endurance is a major issue. The likes of Dubois inevitably trade-off greater muscle tissue for much less oxygen, and Usyk’s expertise for pacing 12 rounds is the same as a observe athlete executing the mile.

Dubois Destroys Joshua

Dubois as soon as once more bounced again from defeat with stoppage wins – this time in opposition to strong opposition in Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgović. A key weapon was his sturdy, stiff jab, which inflicted harm in its personal proper while additionally organising his proper hand or well-delivered mixtures, usually flowing easily from head to physique. In addition they gave him the chance to indicate resilience when he obtained tagged, better aggression at shut quarters, and a transparent need to not go the gap.

These victories led to an all-British struggle at Wembley Stadium final September with former world champion Anthony Joshua, a longtime family title courtesy of Olympic gold. In a blistering efficiency, Dubois knocked his compatriot down 4 instances in 5 rounds. Joshua did handle to harm Dubois badly within the fifth spherical – however as he moved in with an uppercut, Dubois lastly dispatched him with a wonderfully timed counter proper.

Usyk, for his half, unified after which defended his titles in opposition to Fury in Saudi Arabia – each shut, gruelling affairs. At 38, this can be his sixth consecutive heavyweight championship struggle – to not point out the small matter of two months within the Territorial Military on the entrance traces of Kyiv between the Joshua fights. It’s nearly a decade since he gained his first cruiserweight world title. All of it begs the query: when is all of it going to meet up with him?

The Case for Dubois

Within the aftermath of the Joyce defeat, it could have been fanciful to consider Dubois would now be favoured by many to turn out to be the unified champion.

Quiet and reserved by nature, he has proven deep resolve to rebuild his profession. Dubois marched into the ring at Wembley Stadium in opposition to Joshua – the one frequent opponent he shares with Usyk – with a glance of full self-assurance. How did they examine? Usyk fought twenty-four extremely aggressive rounds. Dubois handed out a five-round shellacking.

Dubois is solely not the identical man Usyk confronted two years in the past – now 27, Dubois is a mix of youth and expertise on the massive stage. The coolness he confirmed when Joshua rocked him is telling. His response was no wild swing in desperation however a split-second calculation which resulted in a brutal knockout. There’s a sense every part is with the youthful man: momentum, confidence, house benefit.

The controversial low blow apart, he is aware of he shook Usyk each upstairs and downstairs throughout their first struggle. Make no mistake: Dubois has the ability to knock out the champion.

Not like the dreary evening in Poland, each punch he lands will reverberate with a roar from over 90,000 followers – one thing which might’t assist however affect the judges. Factors victories, although, shouldn’t be on his thoughts. Utilizing a continuing jab, and conserving simply on the precise facet of recklessness, his greatest likelihood is to decide to an all-out assault, by no means permitting Usyk to settle – wave after wave of highly effective mixtures for so long as he can maintain them.

It’s a dangerous technique, no query, however making an attempt to beat Usyk at his personal recreation has confirmed a idiot’s errand. Dubois appeared to recognise as a lot on the pre-fight press convention: “Fireworks, it’s going to be bombs away on the evening. I’m going to be the one throwing bombs.”

Dubois has demonstrated these bombs are highly effective sufficient to harm Usyk, however this time he has the expertise and perception to go additional and seal victory.

The Case for Usyk

The anticipation of a Usyk regression is unfounded: he merely doesn’t flip in sub-par performances. Whether or not it’s Joshua’s petulance within the aftermath of his rematch, Fury resorting to low-cost insults, or Dubois resigning on one knee – it’s the British challengers who’ve capitulated mentally. Usyk, alternatively, has remained bodily and psychologically strong. He additionally has 9 rounds’ expertise with the Londoner percolating in his strategic mind.

Dubois could have concussive energy but when explosiveness alone was sufficient, Usyk would have been relieved of his titles way back. Has Dubois’ win over Joshua flattered him? ‘AJ’ appeared a shadow of his former self and tactically at sea from the opening bell but nonetheless managed to ship Dubois reeling simply previous to the dramatic ending.

The comeback wins in opposition to Miller and Hrgović, although spectacular, confirmed a number of defensive weaknesses stay unaddressed – most notably, preventing in straight traces, which makes him susceptible for counters; and a bent to drop his fingers while additionally conserving his head nonetheless. Above all, Dubois struggles with velocity and motion – exactly Usyk’s strengths.

These technical shortcomings could also be partly attributable to his measurement – 6’5’’ and 250 lb – however Dubois additionally opted to show skilled at 18 years previous, fairly than keep within the Olympic system. Usyk turned professional at 26: a distinction of 275 beginner fights. Usyk is now one of many world’s best boxers – a separation that occurred via pure potential and years of improvement in adolescence and younger maturity, not one thing that may be closed at this stage of their careers.

Prediction

Usyk goes to must climate a storm within the early phases, one which can change into the fiercest of his profession. In the end, although, the hole between their basic boxing skills will show too nice. Dubois’ expertise and renewed grit may even see him via to the ultimate bell, however Usyk will win a aggressive struggle on the rating playing cards.

If Dubois does get his revenge and upend the division, it can stay within the reminiscence lengthy after Wimbledon winners and golf champions are forgotten. It will likely be one of many best accomplishments in British sporting historical past. On a summer season’s evening in London, when two nice fighters should search deeper inside themselves than ever earlier than, particular issues can occur.

And that’s merely unmissable.

Dubois vs Usyk II is live on DAZN PPV, nineteenth July 2025.