Home Sports Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois: What a title fight means for both men in the heavyweight division
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Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois: What a title fight means for both men in the heavyweight division


On Saturday, Daniel Dubois puts the IBF heavyweight championship on the line against former two-time unified champion Anthony Joshua. With the rematch between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury for the unification title just months away, the winner of Dubois vs. Joshua has a strong position in boxing’s glamor department.

Usyk became the undisputed champion with his initial victory over Fury but was stripped of the IBF because the rematch would prevent him from managing his mandatory challenger. When Usyk was stripped, which Usyk called a “gift” to Joshua and Dubois, Dubois was elevated to full champion status.

Since losing back-to-back fights to Usyk, Joshua has reeled off four straight wins. Most recently, Joshua delivered a knockout of the year contender against former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, who was coming off a razor-thin split decision loss to Fury.

Dubois vs. Joshua is a big fight for the present and future of the division but it’s important for both men in certain ways. Let’s take a look at how the outcome of the fight could affect both men.

What this fight means for Dubois

But for the fleeting moment, the path to the heavyweight title in this era has always gone through Fury and Joshua — and now Usyk — so it looks like Joshua will be the one standing in line for IBF gold from Dubois. Dubois already failed to land Usyk in 2023. He believed he scored a clean knockdown on Usyk in the fight, but the referee intervened and ruled it a low blow. Usyk had to stop Dubois in round 9, but Dubois Believes he has “unfinished business”. With Usyk.

A loss to Joshua would eliminate any chance DuBois has of righting what he feels is wrong against Usyk. The Ukrainian is nearing retirement but is uncertain what will happen after his rematch with Fury. With a win, he could look to become undisputed for a second time at heavyweight, or follow through on his previously planned move back to cruiserweight to try to become undisputed for a second time. that If Dubois beats Joshua and retains the IBF title, Usyk has some chance in the rematch.

DuBois falls into a strange place with a loss. At just 27, he is far from the end of his boxing career, which is to his advantage. There is still plenty of time for Dubois to become world champion again before his career ends but if he loses, he can drive around the block until Usyk, Fury and Joshua all hang up their gloves and a spot opens up. From a legacy perspective, this would not reflect well on Dubois’ career.

Dubois was in a fortunate position as boxing politics meant that the four world titles could not stay together for long and the IBF title was returned to the air, thus Dubois was promoted from interim to full champion. But Dubois’ championship is a paper title and no disrespect to Filip Horgovich, his reign won’t feel legitimate until he beats someone seen as a legitimate world champion-level opponent. In this way, it may be now or never for Dubois to build a legacy as one of the greatest heavyweight fighters of an exciting heavyweight era.

What does this fight mean for Joshua?

For both men, being in a position to face the winner of Usyk vs. Fury II is as big a prize as the IBF title, which could be seen as a secondary title in the division after being stripped from Usyk. But Joshua has a history with both men which means a potential showdown means more than just an undisputed championship fight.

A fight between Joshua and Fury has been discussed for years and even this late in their respective careers would be the biggest fight in British boxing history. If you add the stakes of the Undisputed Heavyweight Championship on the line, it becomes one of the biggest fights of all time. Of course, if both Fury and Joshua were to lose their upcoming fights, the best option would be to have the fight anyway. It will still be a big fight, even if it’s not as big as at any point in the past decade.

There is no way for Joshua to have a third fight with Usyk to beat Dubois And Enticing Usyk to undisputed status at heavyweight for a second time. Usyk may not be entirely interested as he has already taken down Joshua twice.

What the Dubois fight may represent more than anything is an opportunity for Joshua to continue building his legacy. A victory would make him a three-time world champion and would be another step towards reducing the scars like the historic 2019 upset at the hands of Andy Ruiz Jr. or the countless disappointing performances in the career victories of Pepper Joshua.

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