Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois will square off to crown an undisputed heavyweight champion on Saturday, as they renew a rivalry that led to a controversial clash in 2023.
When the unbeaten Ukrainian and the Briton meet at Wembley Stadium this weekend, Usyk will put the unified belts on the line, while the Briton defends the IBF title.
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If Usyk, 38, can beat Dubois, 27, again, he will become a two-time undisputed heavyweight champion. The southpaw, who previously reigned as undisputed cruiserweight king, won undisputed status at heavyweight with a points win over Tyson Fury in May. He then vacated the IBF belt before retaining his remaining titles against Fury with another decision victory in December.
Dubois was elevated from interim IBF champion to official champion when Usyk gave up his belt, and he retained that gold with a knockout of Anthony Joshua in September.
Dubois’s demolition of “AJ” in fact took place at Wembley, where he faces Usyk on Saturday, but why was their last meeting so controversial?
Usyk outboxed Dubois for much of the contest, which took place in Poland, but there was major drama in round five.
Dubois threw a body shot that arguably landed low, with Usyk immediately wincing and hunching over. The Olympic champion fell to the canvas, but the referee did not start a count, having ruled the punch as landing below the belt.
Usyk was given five minutes to recover, per the rules. Despite declaring himself ready to resume boxing, Usyk was urged by referee Luis Pabon to take more time. Usyk ultimately used three minutes and 45 seconds of the five minutes allowed.
The round then resumed, and Dubois was unable to capitalise, with the bout progressing into round eight. In that round, Usyk dropped Dubois to a knee, and he did the same in the ninth round, with Dubois unable to beat the ref’s count on the latter occasion.
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Dubois’s team, led by his incensed promoter Frank Warren, appealed the result but failed to get it overturned.
Ahead of Saturday’s rematch, the legitimacy of Dubois’s fifth-round punch has again been debated, with some fans still feeling that it was a legal shot that should have resulted in Usyk receiving a count from the referee.
Even if Usyk had beaten such a count, he would have likely lost the round 10-8, allowing Dubois to narrow the gap on the scorecards somewhat.
When The Independent and other publications interviewed Warren in April, the promoter brought printed images of Dubois’s fifth-round strike on Usyk, insisting they showed it was a legal punch.
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