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Why Wardley vs. Dubois feels like the real fight of Britain rather than Joshua vs. Fury
The Fight of Britain belt will be up for grabs when Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua finally collide this year after a decade of teasing boxing fans that their bitter rivalry is finally coming to a head.
The Ring announced a solid gold title will be created for two of British boxing’s biggest ever stars, but would it be more fitting if the newly created gong was available this weekend when Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois meet in Manchester for the former’s WBO heavyweight crown , live and exclusive on DAZN PPV and Ultimate Tier?
Wardley and Dubois trash talk ahead of world title fight
Wardley vs. Dubois only on DAZN PPV and Ultimate Tier - Saturday, May 9 - Buy here
In Joshua and Fury, boxing has had two superstars that have seen heir illustrious careers run side by side for vast amounts of time.
However, their inevitable meeting, perhaps five or six years overdue, arrives with each man in the departure lounge seemingly unable to get back into the mix at the business end of the heavyweight division. The place where Wardley and Dubois find themselves now.
Headlining on PPV inside Britain’s largest arena, Wardley vs Dubois for a portion of the sport’s richest prize is an unlikely battle between two fighters who appeared consigned to the shadows of the giants of the fighters they are currently surpassing.
When each fighter turned professional on April 8, 2017, on separate shows, the heavyweight landscape belonged to Joshua and Fury with Deontay Wilder also a small proprietor in his role as WBC ruler.
Oleksandr Usyk was still at cruiserweight, but for Dubois and Wardley, their expectations remained grounded as a golden era was underway far higher up the ladder.
Joshua was the face of boxing, and an absent Fury was lineal champion. Both men had extinguished the Klitschko reign using different materials to get the job done.
Stadiums, riches, and undisputed status were the targets for the division's main men and nobody operating on that level nine years ago even gave a second thought to either Wardley or Dubois, and why should they have?
Dubois discovered by Queensberry's wise owls
Dubois was a teenager. Unknown to the masses, but the wise owls at Queensberry had been aware of the Londoner’s potential and persuaded him to abandon his amateur hopes and embark on a professional adventure.
That crusade has taken him to Wembley Stadium more than once, destroy Joshua, and also become world champion, but not everything has been plain sailing.
A shattering loss to Joe Joyce in 2020 at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic brought Dubois’ heart into question as he refused to rise during the referee’s count after suffering eye damage.
Similar accusations resurfaced in 2023 when Dubois was halted by Usyk in their first encounter before a rematch two years later with the same opponent was overshadowed by a party thrown at Dubois’ house before he was stopped by the Ukrainian for a second time.
Leigh Dawney/Queensberry
But even when dissecting the strange balance between Dubois’ many successes and few failures, one thing that cannot be disputed regarding Dubois is his box office appeal that has saw him escape the shadows of Joshua and Fury and become a fighter that promoters, television, and the sport's moneymen can all depend on.
And the same can be said about Wardley.
A White-Collar fighter used to dinner halls and social clubs, Wardley’s inaugural stage in the pro ranks was serving Dillian Whyte as a sparring partner and that is probably as good as it could be for a young fighter with no amateur pedigree or obvious attributes.
Coming up on small hall shows and the odd Matchroom undercard, Wardley went about his work quietly and diligently until it became apparent that there was plenty to work with.
Feeling he had to work twice as hard to make up the experience he lacked, Wardley’s time in the gym was paying off inside the ring and after making light work of respected domestic contenders such as Frazer Clarke and David Adeleye.
2025 was the time to step him up and how that gamble paid off.
Queensberry/Leigh Dawney
With the unlicenced fight tag still very much attached to him, Wardley was made to look clueless for large portions of his fights with Justis Huni and Joseph Parker, a star amateur and former world champion respectively.
As both fights wore on, Wardley, who was able to withstand the most, flipped each fight upside down and responded the only way he knows how with brute force and pure pressure. Will that be enough on Saturday night?
Wardley’s defence has never been difficult to breach, but his chin holding out against all comers so far, it would be a risk to let Dubois have the same success as the likes of Huni as he carries far more firepower.
Ben Davison, who will be part of Wardley’s training team has first-hand experience at seeing one of his fighters get obliterated by Dubois when he cornered Joshua. So he knows better than most how cautious his man must be in the early stages.
A heavyweight fight with so many plotlines
Those first few rounds have been a constant talking point throughout the build-up and it is the period of the fight where Dubois must strike first like he did against Joshua and also where Wardley must improve his own weaknesses when falling behind against both Huni and Parker.
If Dubois can land in those initial rounds, then this could be another early night for the 28-year-old, three years the younger man, as he demonstrates to Wardley that he cannot get away with another off night.
If the second half of the contest begins then this is where Wardley must seek an initiative and try to drag Dubois to that uncomfortable location where he unravelled against Joyce and Usyk.
Queensberry/Leigh Dawney
So many plotlines and so much potential is why this fight has been labelled ‘Don’t Blink’ and it has captured the public’s imagination wonderfully as everybody knows that these two fighters deliver more often than not.
When the action gets underway, expect Dubois’ fast start to be met with caution from Wardley who will seek to take the sting out of his opponent's first onslaughts in the hope of seeing the closing stages.
When the fight reaches that point, it will be Wardley who takes over with his frequent attacks forcing a stoppage in the championship rounds with a brave Dubois being rescued by the referee to retain his WBO belt and having a legitimate claim to the Fight of Britain one that were scheduled to see later this year.
Watch Wardley vs. Dubois only on DAZN
The WBO world heavyweight title is on the line for Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois this Saturday, May 9, only on DAZN PPV. Buy as a one-off PPV or included, along with the Usyk vs Verhoeven (May 23), Fury vs. Hall (June 13) and Zayas vs. Ennis (June 27) PPVs, with a DAZN Ultimate Tier subscription.
