Daniel Dubois was written off, but he didn’t write back.
“Dynamite” Dubois dominated, detonated and destroyed Anthony Joshua on Saturday in front of a record crowd of 96,000 fans at London’s Wembley Stadium, dropping his British counterpart four times to score a fifth-round knockout win.
Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs) stunned Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) from the onset, knocking him down in Rounds 1, 3, 4 and 5 in a thrilling fight to defend his IBF heavyweight title for the first time.
“I wasn’t going to be denied tonight; by any means necessary,” Dubious said during his post-fight press conference. “I knew it was my night tonight. I want to thank my family for getting me through this and keeping me mentally strong throughout.
“[Critics] were doubting me and always saying I was going to get knocked out. We all saw who got knocked out. I’m glad I proved everyone wrong. This is the start of my journey.
“I feel like the champ and I want to keep my belt and keep the train running. It’s great.”
With the win, Dubious completed a remarkable 13-month turnaround after suffering the second loss of his career to unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk in August 2023.
After TKO wins against Jarrell Miller in December and Filip Hrgovic in June, Dubois proved that the former two-time heavyweight champion and heavy favorite Joshua would be no match.
“The last year has been a growing process and a growing journey,” said Dubois, who also suffered a knockout loss to Joe Joyce in 2020.
“Tonight almost felt like a dream in the ring, and I just had to seize the moment. I took the opportunity with both hands tonight.
“[Tyson Fury and Usyk] are my targets now. I want the rematch [versus Usyk] and prove the wrong right. I need to get back and fulfill my full potential now.”
Dubois pulverized Joshua from pillar to post, outlanding him 79 to 32. Just as Joshua appeared to rock and rattle Dubois in the fifth, Dubois immediately retaliated with a rifle right that ended the fight.
“He couldn’t keep me down,” said Dubois. “He had to nail me to the canvas. I was unstoppable tonight. It was a good firefight. He could have thrown everything at me and I would have come through it.
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter whose work has appeared on ESPN, Fox Sports, USA Today, The Guardian, Newsweek, Men’s Health, NFL.com, Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, Ring Magazine and more. He has been writing for BoxingScene since 2018. Manouk is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube, through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or via www.ManoukAkopyan.com.
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