As we get ever closer to the massive card that will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on February 22 – with some people confidently referring to the stacked card as the greatest in all of boxing – the heavyweight title fight between Daniel Dubois and Joseph Parker seems to have been generating a good deal of interest. Plenty of fans are, of course, most excited about the four-belt rematch between 175-pounders Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol, but it’s possible the IBF heavyweight title fight is running the headline act a close second in terms of buzz and anticipation.
And Dubois’s promoter Frank Warren says a massive rematch with Oleksandr Usyk is “the most natural rematch anywhere in boxing,” with the Queensbury boss saying Usyk-Dubois II must happen if Dubois gets through Parker. Speaking on the Ariel and Ade Show on DAZN, Warren said there is no bigger rematch in the sport right now.
“If he [Dubois] wins, and I believe he will win, but it’s a very tough fight, then that for me has got to be the most natural rematch anywhere in boxing,” Warren said of a Usyk Vs. Dubois II. “We had that controversial moment with Daniel and he definitely hurt Oleksandr. Looking at Daniel and how he has matured over the last three fights, he’s shown what he’s all about. Every fight except this fight he’s gone in as an underdog and he’s proven everyone wrong and he wants to wipe the slate clean with Usyk. It’s a natural fight, there’s no doubt about it, probably the biggest fight out there, and provided he comes through I believe we’ll get it on and it will be a mega fight.”
There are some good judges who are picking Parker to defeat Dubois, and a Parker win would ruin Warren’s plans for the Usyk rematch – people like Eddie Hearn, Alex Krassyuk, and Martin Bakole pick Parker to take Dubois’s belt later this month. But if Dubois can get the win in Riyadh, that rematch with Usyk would indeed be an obvious fight to make. For Usyk the fight would present him with the chance to become a two-time unified heavyweight ruler, while for Dubois, well, a rematch would offer him a chance to, as Warren said, wipe the slate clean.
But can Dubois improve on his performance from August of 2024? Dubois hurt Usyk with a ‘Was it low, was it a legit body shot?’ but he soon fell apart after that, and he appeared to lose heart on the way to being stopped. How much mentally stronger is Dubois today, though? Maybe we will get to see Usyk and Dubois do it again sometime later this year. Is there any fight out there that seriously interests Usyk at this stage of his career?
