England’s Daniel Dubois broke Anthony Joshua’s expectations of turning into a three-time heavyweight title holder with a fifth-round knockout, holding his IBF title at a pressed Wembley Arena on Saturday. Dubois stunned Joshua in the primary round with a strong right hand, prompting a standing eight count from the ref. The 27-year-old overcame pre-battle presumption as he persistently went after his rival.
Joshua, 34, got through a weighty surge in cycle two however figured out how to hang tight, just to end up in additional difficulty during the third round as Dubois kept landing strong right-hand punches. Joshua was bailed out by luck while battling on the ropes. By the fourth round, Joshua could scarcely remain on his feet, falling again with two minutes remaining. The battle finished in the fifth round when Dubois conveyed a conclusive right to Joshua’s jawline, leaving the previous IBF, WBA, and IBO champion unfit to rise.
After the triumph, Dubois tended to the group, proclaiming, “Are you not engaged?” He communicated his desire to arrive at the apex of the game in the wake of getting the greatest success of his 24-battle profession. Coordinators revealed a post-The Second Great War English participation record of 96,000 at the Saudi-financed occasion in Wembley. Among the participants were Desert garden frontman Liam Gallagher, who performed three tunes on his 52nd birthday, and Ukraine’s WBC, WBA, and WBO champion Oleksandr Usyk.
Usyk, who has proactively beaten both Joshua and Dubois, will confront England’s Tyson Fierceness in a rematch in Saudi Arabia this December. While Joshua had expected a shot at the champ of that battle, his future currently looks dubious after Dubois’ triumph. Dubois communicated his longing for one more battle with Usyk, who crushed him in nine adjusts last year in Poland. Usyk abandoned the IBF belt for his impending rematch with Rage, permitting Dubois, the break holder, to be moved up to title holder in June.
Joshua, pondering his loss, credited Dubois and his group, conceding, “We tossed the dice of progress, yet we missed the mark.” This was Joshua’s thirteenth world heavyweight title battle, leaving him with a record of four misfortunes from 32 sessions. Joshua previously won the IBF belt in 2016, lost it to Andy Ruiz in 2019, recaptured it that very year, yet was at last crushed by Usyk in 2021.
Joshua recognized his missteps, calling his adversary sharp and quick. His advertiser, Eddie Hearn, affirmed intends to summon a rematch condition, saying Joshua could fill in certainty and trust in his capacity to win the battle.
