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Eddie Hearn has predicted that the pressure of a fight with Anthony Joshua will be too much for Daniel Dubois, and that the younger fighter’s “head will fall off” at Wembley.
On Saturday, Dubois defends the IBF heavyweight title against his fellow Briton, having been elevated from interim champion after Oleksandr Usyk vacated the regular belt.
And Joshua’s promoter believes the occasion may get to Dubois, 27, as he faces 34-year-old “AJ”, a fighter with plenty of stadium experience.
“Dubois, I think his head will fall off on Saturday,” Hearn told reporters on Monday (16 September). “But that could make him more dangerous! I’m not sure he’ll be able to execute his specific gameplan, I think he could come out like a bull again – which is dangerous, and might be his best chance, but he might get bumped!”
However, Hearn did cite Dubois’s fight with Usyk last August – a stoppage defeat for the Briton, in a Polish football stadium.
“I think you never know until... He’s got the benefit of the Usyk fight in Wroclaw, that was a stadium fight,” said Hearn, 45. “I know it was much smaller, but... The pressure of this week, you could even see it in the head-to-head. But that has no relevance to his chances in the fight, honestly. I just think the only relevance it has is if he can compose himself and do what he’s been working on.”
A British-record crowd of 96,000 is expected at Wembley Stadium, compared to approximately 40,000 at Usyk vs Dubois.
“I think he’ll come out, make mistakes, have a high output, but he won’t be able to anticipate walking through that tunnel,” Hearn continued. “I think even Dillian Whyte folded a bit [against Tyson Fury, at Wembley in 2022], to be honest with you. He’d had some big nights, and I wasn’t at the fight, but I was watching him and thinking: ‘God, he looks like he’s not even with it.’ And he did nothing in the fight.”
Whyte lost to Fury via sixth-round TKO that night, failing to take the WBC heavyweight title from his fellow Briton.
“I know [Dubois] won’t be able to compose himself like AJ,” Hearn added. “I was in the changing room with Edgar Berlanga, and he was almost in tears with wanting to win so bad [against Canelo last Saturday].” Canelo went on to beat Berlanga on points in Las Vegas.
Hearn did acknowledge that Dubois’s father could play a pivotal role in “Dynamite”’s performance, however. Dubois’s father was heard motivating his son from ringside in recent fights, and the younger Dubois believes that dynamic has been hugely beneficial.
“The dad will play a big part!” Hearn insisted. “I’ve been up close and personal with him the last two fights, and it’s unbelievable to watch the dad. It’s almost like asking if everything’s okay, every couple of minutes. I’d much prefer it if his dad had a bit of a cold and couldn’t come on Saturday, because it’d be a much easier job! He’s won [his son] the last two fights – definitely the [Jarrell] Miller fight; [Daniel] was done.”
Hearn also played down Dubois’s power, refusing to say the 27-year-old is the heaviest hitter in boxing other than Joshua.
“Hmm... I look at it like this,” Hearn began. “I think Dubois has a great chin, which will be interesting on Saturday night, but [Filip] Hrgovic also hit Dubois with the kitchen sink, and Dubois hit Hrgovic with the kitchen sink; although he bashed Hrgovic’s face up, he never really hurt him or had him out. When he boxed Miller, Miller just couldn’t stand up because he was so knackered. [Dubois] hit him with the kitchen sink.”
Dubois stopped Miller in the final seconds of their fight in December and beat Hrgovic in round eight in June – cutting the Croatian to the point that Hrgovic could not continue.
Hearn continued: “He’s a definite puncher, and I think he can punch anybody, but the hardest puncher AJ has faced? I don’t know. When [Andy] Ruiz is letting them ping, he can crack. Wladimir Klitschko, huge puncher. [Alexander] Povetkin, at the time, massive puncher. Tyson Fury told me [Francis] Ngannou was the biggest puncher he’s ever been in with, so maybe he was just trying to s*** me up.”
Fury survived a knockdown by Ngannou to beat the Cameroonian on points last October. That bout marked Ngannou’s boxing debut, with the “Predator” mainly competing in mixed martial arts and having previously held the UFC heavyweight title. Ngannou then boxed Joshua in March and lost via second-round KO, after suffering three knockdowns.
Joshua vs Dubois will air live on DAZN worldwide, including in the UK and US. The pay-per-view is priced at £19.99, and you can purchase a subscription to DAZN here, with plans starting at £14.99 a month. New subscribers who buy the pay-per-view and sign up to a Monthly Flex Offer will receive a seven-day free trial; those who choose the Instalment Offer will get one month free; and those picking the Annual Offer will receive a 15 per cent discount.
