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I relived the first Usyk vs Dubois fight and I've seen a massive change in Dubois
Saturday night sees the latest instalment of a heavyweight rivalry when Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois meet for a second time, and on this occasion, the undisputed heavyweight title is at stake.
The contest, which will take place at Wembley Stadium and broadcast live on DAZN PPV, will pit a pound-for-pound great in Usyk, who last year had back-to-back wins against Tyson Fury, against a Dubois who is at the peak of his boxing powers.
Come the opening bell at England’s national stadium, it will be close to two years since Usyk and Dubois first clashed in Poland and it is a fight littered with talking points.
I've been reviewing and reliving that rain-soaked night in Wroclaw, Poland, to see how it could influence Saturday's fight.
Usyk vs Dubois: How did we get here?
After back-to-back wins against Anthony Joshua, it seemed like IBF, WBA and WBO heavyweight champion Usyk was on a collision course to face WBC champion Tyson Fury for the undisputed title in 2023.
However, an arbitration judge ordered Fury to face Deontay Wilder for a third time and scuppered any hope of a much-anticipated undisputed title fight.
Instead, Usyk needed to focus on keeping all three of his heavyweight belts by dealing with his mandatory challengers, cue Dubois.
‘Dynamite’ was the WBA’s ‘regular’ heavyweight champion after beating Trevor Bryan in June 2022.
After a nervy stoppage win against Kevin Lerena six months later, the WBA called for Usyk to make a mandatory defence against the British heavyweight at some point in 2023.
A deal was then reached, and the date was set for August 26, with Poland’s Stadion Wroclaw being the destination.
Usyk vs Dubois: What happened in the first fight?
Usyk was the overwhelming favourite to beat Dubois with the former being labelled a pound-for-pound great. From the opening bell there was a gulf in boxing ability.
The Ukrainian’s strategy was built around his jab in the southpaw stance, and he established it early, while Dubois struggled to adjust to the speed at which Usyk was moving and throwing punches.
An Usyk left hand stunned Dubois in the second, and this was followed by a one-two combination in round three. Dubois’ success prior to this fight came through his explosive punches, but Usyk had managed to nullify this threat with Dubois failing to throw anything significant.
Arguably the most memorable, and controversial, moment came in round five when Usyk was struck with a body shot with two minutes and thirty-eight seconds remaining.
Referee Luis Pabon immediately deemed the shot illegal as a low blow under Usyk's belt line and gave him time to recover before resuming the fight, despite the protests from Dubois and his corner, who believed the punch was higher and fair.
Tempers flared at the end of the session when Dubois was hit after the bell, but this did not stop Usyk from upping his activity and continuing to dominate.
Dubois, clearly frustrated and demotivated from the low blow call, was on unsteady legs after Usyk landed with ease in round seven.
The first signs of the punishment taking effect were on show in the eighth when Dubois was knocked down by another Usyk flurry.
This was the beginning of the end for Dubois, whose world heavyweight title challenge was brought to an end in the ninth when an Usyk right hand stopped ‘Dynamite’ with one minute and 12 seconds remaining.
Usyk vs Dubois: Trainer Don Charles reflects on Dubois’ loss to Usyk
It was all change for Dubois ahead of what was at the time the biggest fight of his career.
For the first time, heavyweight specialist trainer Don Charles was in Dubois’ corner, and speaking in an exclusive interview with DAZN News, Charles revealed that the preparations for the first fight with Usyk were far from ideal.
“Every camp is more or less the same period, the minimum for a championship fight is around 12 weeks to prepare,” Charles said.
“We had 14 weeks to prepare, but 14 weeks with a new fighter and a coach relationship wasn't enough time to get to know one another before going into a fight of that magnitude.
“We went on to lose the fight. But guess what? I'm a firm believer in destiny.
“When it happened, obviously, it's almost like the world had ended. We were very disappointed, especially in the circumstances of how it ended.
“But things happen for a reason.”
Analysis from DAZN News Boxing writer Matt Astbury
For Dubois, the loss to Usyk has been a coming of age moment.
Re-watching the fight, Dubois was reluctant to throw a significant punch and shrunk on boxing's biggest stage against a quicker and relentless Usyk.
Since then, head trainer Charles has made Dubois confident in his own boxing ability. 'Dynamite' already had the talent to be a major player at heavyweight, it was just a case of someone adding the necessary tweaks to take Dubois to world championship level.
Dubois has not faced any old pushovers on the road to his rematch with Usyk, he has beaten Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Anthony Joshua. These are all major players at heavyweight, and he has knocked every single one of them out!
Usyk seemingly has one eye already on retirement so now could be the perfect opportunity for Dubois to get his revenge.
If he is to be successful, Dubois will need to slow Usyk down, and to do that, target the body. An assault to the body will leave the Ukrainian vulnerable upstairs to one of Dubois' explosive knockout punches.
If Dubois can successfully pull off this gameplan against an always Usyk who tires his opponents mentally and physically, there will be a new king of the heavyweight division when the lights go out under Wembley Stadium's iconic arch.
Usyk vs Dubois 2 only on DAZN
Watch Usyk versus Dubois 2 live and exclusive on DAZN PPV this Saturday - July 19 - for £24.99 UK; $59.99 US; $19.99/equivalent ROW. Buy the PPV now here.
