Anthony Joshua was not impressed with a claim made about opponent Daniel Dubois’ performance against Anthony Joshua
Anthony Joshua was left bristling at a claim Daniel Dubois gave OIeksandr Usyk a harder fight than his fellow Brit.
Joshua was dethroned by Usyk at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2021 before losing the rematch the following year. He has gone on to win four successive fights since then, against Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius, Otto Wallin and Francis Ngannou. He will now take on Dubois later this month for his fellow Brit’s IBF heavyweight world title after the Londoner recovered from his own defeat by Usyk.
Dubois was adamant he knocked down Usyk but the blow as ruled as being below the belt before the Ukrainian roared back to defend his titles by stoppage. And during a face-off filmed when the fight was announced, Dubois’ promoter Frank Warren claimed that was Usyk’s toughest night until he took on Tyson Fury earlier this year.
Asked about Dubois’ alleged mental fragility, Warren said : “The first two rounds against [Filip] Hrgovic, I was getting p**** off watching how many right hands he got caught with; that was resilience. I don’t want to bang on about Usyk but he gave Usyk his toughest fight until he fought Tyson. That was a tough night for Usyk at the end of the day and unfortunately what happened happened.
“I think that was more about the frustration that was going on with the referee, but it’s irrelevant, he’s got over that, he’s done that, he’s now shown what he’s all about. He’s 26, thats a baby for heavyweight. There’s eight years difference; he’s a young man compared to AJ. AJ had done a lot in his career, he’s come back and won his last four fights but he (Dubois) is hungry. He can fight, I’ve never had any doubt in his ability.
“He can jab, he can punch, he can move, he is fast. the only thing about him is in his head and in his last two fights he’s had to dig deep and he has, and he won in style and that’s why we’re sitting here today. He’s done it against world class fighters and now it’s on to the next chapter of his career and whether he can defend his title and I believe he can.”
Joshua and his promoter Eddie Hearn shared a look during Warren’s claim, with both making it clear they disagreed with the bold comment. Hearn said later: “I disagree with Frank, I don’t think he gave him his toughest fight, but there was some controversy there.”
