DANIEL DUBOIS’ rematch with Oleksandr Usyk has been moved to a new date due to a scheduling clash.
Greenwich gladiator Dubois was set to get his second crack at the former undisputed heavyweight champion in a Wembley war on July 12.
Daniel Dubois and Oleksandr Usyk were set to renew their rivalry on July 12RICHARD PELHAM
But their Wembley war has been rescheduledRICHARD PELHAM
Their second showdown was set to take place just hours before a stacked Ring Magazine show featuring Edgar Berlanga and Shakur Stevenson in New York City.
And organisers have opted to move the Usyk vs Dubois II date back a week, meaning the pair will now trade heavy leather on July 19.
The home of English football will still host the fight, in which Dubois will look to exorcise the ghost of his first clash with the former pound-for-pound king.
Dubois suffered a ninth-round TKO defeat to the slick southpaw in the Polish punch-up in August 2023.
The IBF heavyweight king thought he was on his way to winning the fight in the fifth round when he dropped Usyk with a shot to the body.
But referee Luis Pabon deemed the punch to be a low blow and gave Usyk the allotted five minutes to recover.
Pabon, however, controversially urged Usyk to take more time to recover after the fan favourite said he was ready to fight.
Dubois and promoter Frank Warren appealed to the WBA to overturn the result of the fight to a no-contest due to Pabon’s questionable low-blow call.
Daniel Dubois thought he had Oleksandr Usyk beat with a body shot in the fifth roundRICHARD PELHAM
But the Panama-based sanctioned body rejected their protestations and upheld the result of Usyk’s second defence of the unified heavyweight titles.
Dubois was heartbroken after coming up short in his first world title fight, with head coach Don Charles telling SunSport the following day: “He’s not in a good state right now, he’s distraught.
“He had his dream snatched away from him. From that moment onwards, the momentum shifted.
“Usyk using his superior experience and his masterful boxing to get out of that situation.
“He was allowed to escape from that situation. The fight was finished, the fight should’ve ended there and then in round five with a KO.
“Not even a TKO, a KO. I feel violated, I feel wounded. My fighter, he’s a young guy. He’s not a guy that says a lot.
“Luckily for us, he has a nice tight family unit and his father is a very strong character who is going to hold him together.
“I’m going to do what a coach does mentally. It’s not even physical, it’s mental.”
Dubois would eventually get his hands on heavyweight gold last September with a crushing fifth-round KO of Anthony Joshua at Wembley.
PADaniel Dubois got his hands on the IBF title with a demolition job of Anthony Joshua[/caption] Creator – [#item_custom_dc:creator]
