High up on the heavyweight wish list of the returning Daniel Dubois is the chance to put right the only blot on his record that came against British rival Joe Joyce.
Dubois, who is back in action with a WBA Interim title shot against Bogdan Dinu in Telford on Saturday, says he would relish the opportunity of setting the record straight against the 2016 Olympic silver medallist should their paths collide once more.
Joyce was triumphant at the end of November when a compelling contest came to an end following Dubois taking himself out of the firing line due to extensive damage to his left eye. The now No.2 ranked WBO contender looked to have executed a cunning and effective game plan to derail the Dubois Express but, when the younger man was counted out, he was actually ahead on the scorecards.
Dubois can put himself right back in the title picture on Saturday with victory over the 20-2 Romanian Dinu, but scoring an equalizer against the only man to have defeated him as a pro remains a high priority, although he insists he will not be consumed by feelings of revenge in the meantime.
“I really do want it, but time will tell what route we both take from here,” said the 23-year-old with a current record of 15-1 (14 KOs). “I would love to fight Joe again. I think I could really do something and beat him. I wasn’t losing by a ton and getting pasted, it was a close fight in my opinion, so nip and tuck, really.
“I want to get back in that sort of level fight and beat someone of Joe’s caliber. We’ll see, I don’t know, only time will tell if it can happen. Right now I am just excited about the comeback.
“I do want to have revenge and to put it right, but if I’ve got to take it out on someone else then, hey, Bogdan is there to get it, isn’t he?”
Returning to the fighting fold with a major belt on the line is a significant bonus for Dubois and he believes we will witness a combination of his previous bullish approach as well as a degree of patience in the way he sets about Dinu.
“It is not bad at all and it is a nice cherry on the cake for my comeback,” he added on the prize on the line. “That is how I look at it and this belt is an important one to get me ranked and on track again.
“I know enough about him and he is a decent fighter, but not on my level and I will put him away in devastating fashion, I believe. I will make a real statement in this next one.
“You will see a bit of both from me, I think. I’ll have that fire in me to go out there and cause mayhem, but also to show my boxing and clever work behind a jab to set it up better.”
no time soon, if ever. the first fight was pretty convincing
Dubois is way too hyped.
Once you start moving your head!
He needs to stay away from Joe or any heavyweight with good boxing fundamentals, such as a hard stiff jab. He should be handled like a Tommy Morrison to just KO B-level fighters, and make that glorious UK money.
B level fighters are too good for him. he needs to fight D rated fighters if he wants to stay undefeated. He is a D rated fighter himself.
Sometimes a fighter just has your number…
He could fight him again in a few years when Joyce is past his best and Dubois is in his prime, but as for anytime soon – I would say stay away from that fight…. although if he wins his next fight, he will technically be ‘heavyweight champion of the world’, maybe Joyce will be interested.
One of the big problems of boxing today is fighters deluded into thinking these belts are important and paying huge sanctioning fees for them. Most sports fans today have no idea who these champions are many have stopped caring.
Joyce in 2!
Dubois has good basic fundamentals as a boxer. Yes, I agree, once he was pressured and taken out of his element, his world crumbled against Joyce. However, to give him a fair shake, maybe his team has been able to regroup and formulate a better plan to improve on his game. Styles make fights. Maybe Joyce was the conflicting style that exposed him. Who really knows at this point unless we see more of Dubois to determine his fate.
Maybe one of DDs problems was that he was over reliant on his power and forgot to use his boxing brain.
If he uses a different approach he could beat Joyce. I like the comm Joyce in 2. It wasn’t as if dubois went down from the actual shot – it was just the straw that broke the camels back (his eye socket) and he chose to take a knee.
I feel for JJ who has been sidelined due to the AJ/Fury situation. This next fight for DD is not really for a WT and to DDs credit he seems to feel that revenge over JJ is more important
If Usyk fights Joshua, that leaves Joyce with no dance partner. Frank Warren promotes Joe and DDD, so it’s an easy fight to make. It makes sense for Frank, but not for Dubois’ health.
Been watching old Ali Frazier and other past heavyweight films. Ali and Frazier would beat Fury Joshua Wilder Usek and all these other bums on the same night. Just like Foreman did when he fought 5 guys on the same night. Jimmy Ellis and Jerry Quarry would destroy everyone of these tomato can bums.
You had me up until Jerry Quarry. These current Heavyweights are still young with history still to be written.
I think Larry Holmes is considering another comeback when he sees what’s around today. Charles Martin was a heavyweight champion my god
Dubois wants Joyce. Let’s see if he can win this fight against Dinu. Personally, I don’t like Dubois’s chances. Dinu in a TKO upset win.