Anthony Joshua’s coach Ben Davison has finally explained the controversial order to “roll the dice” in September’s defeat by Daniel Dubois.
In a packed-out Wembley Stadium, Dubois dropped his fellow Briton four times and sealed a fifth-round stoppage, retaining the IBF heavyweight title in the process.
Joshua, 35, has not fought since. While the former champion recovers from elbow surgery and considers shoulder treatment, 27-year-old Dubois is preparing to face unified champion Oleksandr Usyk.
That bout will take place on 19 July at Wembley, where Dubois dealt Joshua a brutal KO in the fifth round, after “AJ”’s corner gave a surprising order after the fourth frame.
With Joshua having been dropped once in each of the first, third and fourth rounds, many observers felt that the Olympic gold medalist needed to use the fifth round to recover. If successful, Joshua could perhaps have sought a finish later in the fight, yet Davison and his team encouraged Joshua to “roll the dice”.
Many fans and pundits interpreted that messaging as Davison and co urging Joshua to take an unnecessary risk. However, Davison has suggested it was a specific reference to a combination: a double-jab and right uppercut.
Responding to an observation made by Dubois’s ex-coach Shane McGuigan on commentary, Davison told Talksport: “It didn’t [play out as McGuigan predicted], though. He’s saying that Daniel’s putting a right hand behind the double. So, he’s saying Daniel Dubois throws a double-jab then a right [straight].
“He would be 100 per cent correct; Daniel was throwing that throughout the fight. We’ve asked AJ to throw a double-jab and bring it up the middle. Daniel was defending AJ’s right hand by ducking underneath it; therefore, if he’s ducking underneath your right hand, the correct adjustment is to let him dip onto the right uppercut.
“‘Roll the dice’ is like… that was something that he’d worked on throughout camp: double-jab, bring it up the middle. Because against [Filip] Hrgovic, again, he was so often – sorry, let me finish… He was regularly getting underneath Hrgovic’s right hand.
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“Hrgovic then started to throw an uppercut but wasn’t bringing his feet in to be close enough to deliver the shot.” Hrgovic caught Dubois with many right straights last June, before the Briton turned the tide and scored a TKO, with a ringside doctor recommending that the referee should halt the bout.
Moments before Dubois landed his knockout blow on Joshua, AJ appeared to stun the younger boxer, before seemingly over-committing to an attempt to finish the fight. In the ensuing exchange, Dubois dropped Joshua for the final time, rendering AJ unable to beat the referee’s count.
Dubois was next scheduled to defend the IBF belt against Joseph Parker in February but withdrew on two days’ notice, citing illness. Parker went on to knock out Martin Bakole in two rounds.
While Parker’s next move is unclear, as is Joshua’s, Dubois now bids for revenge against Usyk, who recovered from a controversial low blow to stop him in 2023. Dubois’s team appealed the result, saying his low blow was in fact a legal body shot, but the appeal failed.
Joshua has been linked with numerous potential opponents since losing to Dubois. A long-awaited fight against Tyson Fury has been mooted, although the latter claimed in January that he has retired from boxing – not for the first time. Meanwhile, a rematch with old rival Dillian Whyte was recently mentioned, only for Whyte to sign to face Moses Itauma.
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