Tempers Flare: Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois’ Brutal Sparring Sessions Name Surprising Favorite!
AJ and Dubois are slated to face off in the squared circle in September, with both fighters well into preparations for the heavyweight duel of titans.
An undefeated fighter predicts Anthony Joshua will overcome Daniel Dubois when the two heavyweights clash in September.
Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois will fight later this year.
The 34-year-old AJ is now on a four-fight heavyweight winning streak and will remember his second-round knockout of former UFC champion Francis Ngannou from their March superfight in Saudi Arabia. However, he will have high aspirations of winning his WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight belts, which he lost to Oleksandr Usyk in 2022.
With a 28-3 record, Joshua defeated great names like Alexander Povetkin, Joseph Parker, and Wladimir Klitschko before losing his aforementioned championships to Andy Ruiz Jr in his first professional loss in 2019. While he would atone for his setback and reclaim his titles the next year by defeating the same man, he would be unable to recoup his initial loss against Usyk in 2021.
AJ would lose to the Ukrainian in a unanimous decision at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium before a rematch in 2022, ruling out the possibility of a third title battle. However, wins over Jermaine Franklin, Robert Helenius, Otto Walin, and Ngannou have helped the Watford-born star gradually return to contention for the crown.
But if he wants to see his prized belts again, he’ll have to beat fellow Brit Dubois, 26, later this year. Dubois hopes to challenge for the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO, and WBC crowns after an undefeated Usyk denied him four of the five belts in Wroclaw last year, defeating him in the ninth round.
AJ and Dubois are no strangers inside the squared circle, having sparred numerous times as the latter trained for Olympic greatness at the 2020 Tokyo Games, following in Joshua’s footsteps after winning gold in London in 2012. And Sky Boxing reporter Adam Smith says he attended many of these workouts, advising fans that they can expect a “pretty terrific” bout in September.
Joshua and Dubois meet at Wembley in September.
Speaking to the Pro Boxing Fans YouTube channel, Smith said: “The British fight fans have got a chance of seeing AJ again, and in a great domestic dust-up which doesn’t happen too often. You think back to Lewis Bruno and those sorts of nights, but it’s great – they’re two really powerful British heavyweights, they’ve got a big history.
“I’ve seen them spar so many rounds at Team GB and I promise you they were all pretty terrific – pretty hot stuff. So I’m looking forward to that. Dubois will believe this new lease of life that he can topple AJ – AJ back under Ben Davison’s wing looking really, really smart and efficient and back to his best. Bring it on, fantastic.”
Dubois decided to abandon his Olympic dreams in favour of turning pro, signing with Frank Warren’s Queensberry Promotions. The move has proven to have been incredibly successful, with Dubois amassing an impressive record of 21-2 with 20 knockouts to his name over the likes of Filip Hrgović, Jarell Miller and Trevor Bryan.
Joshua’s most recent victory came against Francis Ngannou.
The IBF interim heavyweight champion will be wanting to prove that he can beat the best of the best when he goes toe to toe with Joshua come September, having been beaten by legends in Joe Joyce and the aforementioned Usyk in high-pressure title fights prior. But undefeated super heavyweight Frazer Clarke has Joshua as the favourite to reign supreme over his former teammate when the two clash.
Also speaking to PBF, the 32-year-old admitted: “I’ve witnessed hundreds of rounds with them, loads of rounds with them. I’ll be intrigued. Obviously they’ve both come a long way since then. I’ve still got Joshua favourite, but then Daniel could surprise me because I had Hrgovic as a bit of a favourite against him the other day.
“Who knows? I think they’ve both got good teams around them and Daniel will realise that he can’t take the amount of right hands as he took off Hrgovic from Joshua because…he’ll know that himself. Different fighters. Listen, it’s the heavyweight division, anything could happen, and the way that it is at the moment, everyone’s fighting each other, you’re getting surprises and shocks all of the time. So who knows?”