How a few months, and a win or two, can drastically alter the opinion a fan may have when it comes to a fighter and how a possible future match up may go. Last night in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Daniel Dubois scored the biggest win of his career (so far) in busting up and halting an unbeaten, quite heavily favoured Filip Hrgovic. With the win, 26 year old “Dynamite” almost certainly moves into a massive all-British fight with superstar Anthony Joshua.
As fans know, Turki Alalshikh has a big show planned for Wembley in September, and newly crowned IBF interim heavyweight champ Dubois will almost absolutely (if that’s a phrase!) be the next dance partner for AJ that night. And all of a sudden, after Dubois’ gutsy, at times most dominant win over Hrgovic, this fight is no foregone conclusion.
Don’t get me wrong; AJ has to be seen as a pretty big and firm pick to win this one – Joshua has, we must not forget, been in there with the likes of Usyk, Klitschko, Ruiz, Parker, Povetkin, and plenty of others.
And Joshua seems to have got his mojo back the way Dubois seems to have come into his own as a fighter; with Dubois having now picked up wins over Jarrell Miller and Hrgovic. And now, after seeing how Dubois showed a great chin last night, along with great composure and almost total belief, it is a question well worth asking: who wins if/when Joshua and Dubois get it on?
Dubois can really bang, and how proud would Joshua have been if he’d stopped Hrgovic the way Dubois did? Dubois also perhaps showed a better chin than ever (and shame on those folks who called Dubois a quitter after his loss to Joe Joyce all those years ago; this when Dubois suffered a gruesome eye injury – also, a Dubois-Joyce rematch, anyone?)
Joshua, though, is a proven champion, and we all know he can punch like a mule. And AJ holds a big, big edge in experience over Dubois. But all of a sudden, this fight, which may well happen, is no mismatch. It’s no joke. Instead, Joshua-Dubois is a fight that could sell out Wembley, in fact it will almost certainly do so (and with the customary stacked card Alalshikh puts on, this could be some big show).
Joshua is 34, Dubois is 26. Will youth be served? That and Dubois’ strength, aggression, power, along with his newfound belief – plenty of it brought about by trainer Don Charles? Or will the experience, power, and sheer class of Joshua see him to victory?
Almost overnight, this British heavyweight showdown makes so much sense. And if the fight happens, it could be so much fun to watch.
