Mandatory rotation, lucrative offers, one last dance: Why Daniel Dubois may not get Oleksandr Usyk trilogy dream

Daniel Dubois could well be set for a trilogy bout with Oleksandr Usyk next year after the Briton moved back into title consideration by booking a date with Frank Sanchez.

The former IBF champion will face the Cuban in a final eliminator for the governing body's mandatory challenger position, placing him back in the Ukrainian's crosshairs.

Any return for Dubois to world challenger status so soon after a brutal fifth-round loss against Usyk - his second against the veteran - would mark a remarkable turnaround.

But as the elder star has already shown this year, earning the mandatory spot and then backing it up amid boxing's varied and complex politics are two different things.

Here, DAZN News lays out the reasons why even if Dubois is successful, he is unlikely to earn a third shot against Usyk - and how he can still become champion again.

Mandatory rotation hurts Briton's hopes

With four major governing bodies all jockeying to push their contenders up the pipeline and get them in pole position, there has to be some semblance of order at play.

That's where the rotation comes into play - and with Dubois having last challenged Usyk as the IBF's top contender with belt in hand, they now are likely back of the queue.

Victory for the Briton over Sanchez would put him back in the shop window - but if anybody is going to get a nominal first crack, it will be Joseph Parker or Fabio Wardley.

The pair, currently WBO and WBA interim champions respectively, meet this month with the winner leaping to the front of the line. Dubois would need to wait his turn.

More lucrative offers in Ukrainian's inbox

With no disrespect intended to Dubois - you don't become a world champion without serious graft and talent - the simple fact is that he is yet to truly find his star wattage.

The twenty-eight-year-old is arguably one of the top dozen boxers by name recognition in the world right now - but Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua are arguably higher.

Usyk has fought all three men twice, and it is only Dubois that he has dispatched inside the distance. Both of his elder countrymen would likely juice the coffers more.

Throw in Jake Paul, whose meteoric rise as a commercial boxing force has helped redefine the sport's playbook, and the Briton may be well down Usyk's pecking order.

Impending retirement lays platform

Usyk suggested in the build-up to his second fight with Dubois that he would only contest one more bout before hanging up his gloves and sailing off into the sunset.

There are plenty who feel the star's decision to duck his mandatory bout with Parker suggests he is holding out for that legacy-defining last dance with a favoured rival.

But if Usyk is indeed likely to fight only once more, with a probable date in the first half of 2026, then Dubois is well-placed to reap the possible rewards of his departure.

If the Ukrainian retires undefeated, his belts will shift to interim champions and mandatory challengers - meaning that the Briton could yet be champion again next year.

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