Noel Gallagher and Chris Eubank Jr declared Daniel Dubois’ win over Fabio Wardley the “fight of the year” so far, others questioned why the epic encounter was not stopped sooner.
Dubois recovered from two knockdowns to batter Wardley in the second half of the fight, with doctors at ringside twice allowing the fight to continue after inspections.
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Wardley stumbled from his stool at the start of round 10 and while Carl Frampton called him the “bravest man he’d ever seen”, retired Darren Barker insisted Wardley should not have been allowed to continue.
“Save the man, he’s a father, he’s got a family – pull the plug on this one now,” Barker said on DAZN.
“The referee or his corner should have stepped in before the 10th round, at least,” retired world champion Frampton added.
In the moments after the fight, Wardley could be seen leaning over the ropes to speak to his family, telling him he is “okay”.
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Former super-middleweight world champion Richie Woodhall said Wardley fell “victim” to his previous performances.
Wardley, 31, was massively behind on the scorecards against Joseph Paker and Justis Huni before securing late stoppages.
“It was uncomfortable at times. We know how tough Wardley is. We always said going into this, he was probably in with the hardest puncher he’s faced. I can’t believe the shots that he took, he never hit the canvas,” Woodhall said on BBC Radio 5 Live.
“In the past, the way he’s fought and the way he’s recovered. The referees let that go on too long. Fabio is a victim of that.”
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Boxing expert Steve Bunce agreed there “were limits” to what Wardley could do after his incredible start in the first three rounds completely unravelled by the 10th round.
Was Wardley v Dubois a fight of the year contender?
A host of big names said the encounter was the fight of the year so far, with Michael Conlan, Charlie Edwards, Eubank and Oasis frontman Gallagher agreed it was the year’s best.
There were 749 combined punches thrown over eleven rounds, with Dubois landing 87 power punches to Wardley’s 40.
Frank Warren, who promotes both men, said the fight “two men bearing their hearts and souls in the ring”.
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“You witnessed something special tonight, ultra special,” Warren said.
“Two men bearing their hearts and souls in the ring. They didn’t leave one bit out. It’s the best heavyweight fight I’ve ever done.”
He added: “The determination, the will to win, neither of them taking a backwards step. Amazing.”
The fight will go down among the classics in the heavyweight world title history books, alongside the likes of Anthony Joshua’s comeback win against Wladimir Klitschko in 2017 and Tyson Fury’s trilogy encounter with Deontay Wilder in 2021.
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