Daniel Dubois insists he will end Oleksandr Usyk’s reign as a heavyweight world champion when they clash in Poland on 26 August.
Mandatory challenger Dubois is fighting for the WBA, WBO, IBF and IBO belts that Usyk initially seized from Joshua and then defended in two dramatic fights between the 2012 Olympic gold medalists.
A crowd of 43,000 will gather at the Tarczynski Arena in Wroclaw for what is seen as a routine title defence for the Ukrainian – but Dubois has other ideas. The 25-year-old from London insists he is firing on all cylinders after coming through a tough win against Kevin Lerena in December, during which he was knocked down three times in the opening round while struggling with a knee injury.
“The knee is fine, that’s all cleared up now,” said Dubois, as the rivals came together in Warsaw on Monday for the first press conference. “I’m in a training camp, I’m running and everything is going well. I’m grateful for this opportunity and I’m ready to take it with both hands.
“This has been a long time coming and I’m ready to take it on. Usyk has been a great champion but everything with a beginning has an end and I’m ready.”
Usyk will be fighting in front of a partisan crowd after over one million Ukrainian refugees relocated to Poland to escape Russia’s invasion of their homeland. Adding to the significance of the occasion is that the fight unfolds two days after Ukraine’s Independence Day, while Usyk also won his first cruiserweight title against Krzysztof Glowacki in Gdansk in 2016.
“First of all I want to thank the guys who are defending Ukraine now,” said the unbeaten 36-year-old. “It’s only because of them doing that, that we have the opportunity to defend our titles and bring glory to our country and the flag of our country.
“I’m really happy to be back in Poland. This country has greeted me well. I became the WBO cruiserweight champion here and then over the next years I collected several belts. Now I’m back in Poland here to defend them.
“I want thank the people of Poland for the support they are giving to Ukraine. I’ve been travelling around the world, fighting in the backyards of my opponents, but this fight here in Poland will be the closest one to my home.”
