Daniel Dubois To Ride In Confident On Momentum Against Joshua
On their swiftly approaching September 21 fight date, IBF heavyweight champion Daniel “Dynamite” Dubois (21-2, 20 KO’s) will face two-time heavyweight champion Anthony “AJ” Joshua (25-3, 25 KO’s). For many, Joshua will be the hands down favorite to topple the champion. Naturally though, Dynamite is paying this brand of thought little attention and believes that he will be victorious. Going a step further, as he explained to Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions, his confidence is buoyed by the belief he has fought the better competition.
“For the last couple of fights, yeah, [Jarrell] Miller, [Filip] Hrgovic yeah, definitely. Of course I have fought better opposition. And it’s good for me, not just for AJ, but whoever else I would be fighting. That’s just good momentum, good toughness, building toughness, showing me that I can go the distance and still have power in the later rounds. And go in there and dig it out and have a dog fight, so it’s good!”
THE CRUCIAL CROSSROADS
As he mentioned, Dubois has recently faced Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk. Technically, both have fought and lost to Usyk in the very recent past. In fact, Joshua lost to him twice; first by unanimous decision and then by split decision whereas Dubois was stopped by the Ukrainian technician. Putting the particulars of their defeats to the side for a moment, it’s clear that Dynamite is riding high due to his last several wins.
This could be an important factor when he slides into the ring to test his might against Joshua. Especially so when it comes to this mental fortitude. Dubois was definitely under a bad cloud after losing his matches to Usyk and Joe Joyce, both of which were stoppages. In both instances, many in the boxing world branded him a quitter. Yet, by his own admission in the earlier quote, the IBF champion is more self-assured that he can go the distance against top tier opposition and still be strong.
The question now becomes: can he put it all together when he dances with AJ? While Dubois is on a good run, there is no question that Joshua has been on the grander stage far many more times and for far longer. Can the well-established fighter reanimate some of those nagging ghosts and demons in Dynamite’s heart when they clash? Or will Dubois prove once and for all that he is a true champion who is ready to bash all comers? Luckily for fight fans, we don’t have long to wait on the answer!
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