Daniel Dubois, the IBF world heavyweight boxing champion, has indicated his readiness to matchup two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in the eagerly anticipated rematch.
In an interview with BoxNation, Dubois disclosed that he was ready to show the world that he was the king.
“He’ll have a lot of demons playing on his mind. Who knows if people are talking him into it; I don’t know. I know from my side I’m ready to go out there and show the world that I’m the king,” he said.
If not Joshua, the 27-year-old will try and avenge his defeat to Oleksandr Usyk if the Ukrainian is able to beat Tyson Fury in their rematch in December.
“That’s unfinished business. I want to get that one right. I want to do it properly and finish him. It will be a good fight, a unification fight; that’s massive.”
Last month, Joshua’s bid to become a three-time world champion and return to the division’s top table ended dramatically and unexpectedly, with Dubois dropping him several times at Wembley Stadium in front of 98,000 fans before he landed the final blow, a crunching right-hand, in Round 5 that left Joshua sprawling on the canvas for a fourth career loss.
The defeat sent shockwaves through the boxing world, with some pundits questioning Joshua’s future in the sport.
Joshua immediately put an end to those doubts as he vowed to continue boxing. His promoter, Eddie Hearn, confirmed that the Middle Eastern kingdom will stage the rematch as part of the Riyadh Season, a festival of entertainment and sports events that runs from October to early March.
Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, last weekend, while speaking after the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol fight press conference, revealed February as a tentative date for the bout between Joshua and Dubois.
Dubois fought Usyk in August 2023 and sent the Ukrainian to the canvas with what he thought was a body shot, but it was ruled a low blow, and Usyk went on to win by ninth-round stoppage.
As for Joshua, he’ll be looking to get his career back on track and become world champion again if he takes on Dubois next, and ‘AJ’ recently named the heavyweight who he says he ‘ruined with one punch.’
