Daniel Dubois could face Oleksandr Usyk ahead of mandatory challenger Joseph Parker, after the WBO received a petition to stage the undisputed heavyweight championship fight next.
Usyk, 38, is the WBO, WBA and WBC heavyweight champion and has been ordered to make a defence of his WBO title against Kiwi bruiser Joseph Parker.
However, a title unification can take precedence over a mandatory contest, with IBF champion Dubois looking to get back in the ring with the undefeated Ukrainian, close to two years on from losing their first meeting in highly contentious fashion.
The WBO has now received a petition to allow Usyk and Dubois to unify the belts before Parker gets his shot, with the governing body’s president Gustavo Olivieri confirming as much.
“There is a petition before the Championship Committee to consider a Usyk-Dubois unification to consolidate the heavyweight championships,” Olivieri told Sky Sports.
“Therefore, upon an official ruling regarding this matter, we will publicly announce the official decision, including Parker's mandatory status, if that be the case.”
Usyk previously unified all four major heavyweight titles when he beat Tyson Fury last year, taking away the Englishman’s zero in the process.
He then vacated the IBF belt to pursue a rematch with Fury, leading to Dubois – then the IBF mandatory challenger – being bumped up to full champion.
Dubois was successful in his first defence of the title, knocking out Anthony Joshua at Wembley Stadium in September.
The 27-year-old is now seeking to avenge his controversial defeat to Usyk from August 2023, in which the Ukrainian was dropped by a punch that was deemed to be a low blow by the referee. This was a call that Dubois disagreed with, arguing he caught Usyk on the belt rather than below it. Usyk was then given up to five minutes to recover from the strike and went on to stop Dubois in the ninth round.
A rematch would also give Usyk the chance to become a three-time, two-weight undisputed champion, adding another record to the Olympic gold medallist’s catalogue.
