BBN ask if heavyweight powerhouse Daniel Dubois could make it as a world champion?
Whisper it quietly… Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua may want to look over their shoulder, as Daniel Dubois fancies his chances further in the division, and who could blame him? The 21-year-old recently won the vacant British heavyweight title, defeating unbeaten Nathan Gorman courtesy of a fifth-round knockout and became the third-youngest boxer to claim the title. He is now ranked 7th by the WBO and 15th by the IBF.
The Londoner will take on Ghanaian Ebenezer Tetteh later this month for the vacant Commonwealth heavyweight title. Victory at the Royal Albert Hall on September 27th – the Dubois v Tetteh winner odds are very much stacked in the Brit’s favour – and Dubois will have won seven titles in just 13 fights.
Tetteh may not be a household name, but his record should not be underestimated. The Ghanaian is unbeaten in 19 bouts, clocking up 16 KOs in that time – and that in itself may prove challenging. However, he’s yet to fight outside his native city of Accra and facing Dubois not only on foreign soil, but at his home in the capital, could well prove a stumbling block – with the crowd very much in Dubois’ favour.
Who knows from there, who his next opponent will be, but he’s very much aiming for the top, calling out the biggest. ‘Dynamite’ recently called out fellow Brit – and heavy hitter – David Price, who also previously held the British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles. It would certainly prove a worthy battle for supremacy, with Dubois knocking out 11 of his 12 opponents, without defeat thus far; while Price’s record has seen him knockout 20 of his 25 opponents, with five losses. Dubois insists: “Price is a good fight for me. He has been around a while and fought a lot of guys, but it’s a good match-up and I will take on all-comers.”
The rest of the division looks pretty tasty up until the end of the year, too. Tyson Fury takes on Otto Wallin in defence of his WBO Inter-Continental heavyweight title. Could Then there's the rematch we’ve all been waiting for when Anthony Joshua fights Andy Ruiz Jr for a second time in six months in a bid to regain his WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO heavyweight titles. If Fury wins and sets up the expected February clash with WBC king Wilder and if AJ is successful this time around, could we see another all-Brit clash in the division early next year? If all the British heavyweights mentioned can all win their next fights, then could Dubois be knocking on their doors in early 2020? It's certainly a possibility and the man with the moniker 'Every belt' is eager to test himself against them all.
Following on from his most recent knockout victory over Gorman, 'DDD' said: “I feel ready to fight all of them now, the very best, including Deontay Wilder, Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte, but I know my dad, my trainer Martin Bowers, and my promoter Frank Warren don’t want to rush me through the ranks.
“Once you are up there fighting at that level, you have to stay there, and you are learning on the job, but I know I’m still a year or so away from chasing those guys and I need to get more experience under my belt.”
Still, with six titles and no defeats from 12 bouts – averaging at three rounds to knockout an opponent – Dubois has an exceptional record for a boxer so young. He lives the life and shies away from cameras and controversy, focusing his energy on his career instead, and will surely continue in one direction – and that direction is up, beginning with victory over Tetteh on September 27th.