Daniel Dubois doesn't mind sharing sparring partners with rival Joe Joyce
Team GB amateur helping both heavyweights but Dubois doesn't mind
Daniel Dubois has dismissed concerns about his main sparring partner, Solomon Dacres, being signed to the same management firm as rival Joe Joyce by insisting “it won’t change anything”.
In just 10 days’ time Dubois, considered by many to be the most exciting young prospect in Heavyweight boxing, takes on the biggest test of his short career when he steps up against the more experienced Joyce.
Preparations for such consequential scraps are usually shrouded in secrecy to ensure opponents don’t get sight of key tactics but Dubois and trainer Martin Bowers are fully aware that this time, that’s not the case.
That’s because Dynamite’s main sparring partner, talented Team GB Heavyweight Solomon Dacres, has recently signed a management deal with Joyce’s manager Sam Jones.
Since penning their deal Jones and Dacres have made no secret of the fact that the 27-year-old Birmingham bruiser has been flitting between the Peacock, to spar Dubois, and Stallards Gym in Surbiton to put Joe through his paces.
Dacres spent three years with the Team GB squad before signing pro contracts with S-JAM Boxing, with his debut slated for 2021. He holds a win over Mitchell Barton in the amateurs, who makes his pro bow on the Dubois-Joyce undercard against West Bromwich's Matt Gordon (2-3-1). He was also part of the GB team that took part in the World Series Boxing in 2018, defeating Romainian Mihai Nistor (2-0, 2KOs), who has stopped both his opponents so far in the pro ranks.
Not only has the debutant mixed it in sparring with Joyce and Dubois, but he has also been recruited as a sparring partner for two-time heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua before.
Confident Dubois couldn’t care less about sharing Solomon. The 23-year-old Greenwich knockout artist said: “It’s not going to change anything on fight night. I’ve just got to get in there and put it all on the line. I’ll be ready for that.”
Asked whether he thought there was any intelligence on his preparations that Dacres could smuggle out to Joyce’s camp, Dubois added “I’m changing all the time anyway. Right now, I’m on a different level to what I was last week. I just keep stepping up.”
Daniel did accept that the sparring situation was unusual, suggesting “it’s a new one on me”, but says he doesn’t begrudge Dacres making decisions that are in his best interests.
“It’s boxing. You’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. I don’t begrudge these fighters, he’s out for himself and if that’s the path he’s taking I can’t say too much on that.”
Dubois and Joyce both boast unbeaten records, with the 15-0 Dubois coming off a second round stoppage of outmatched Dutch Heavyweight Ricardo Snijders.
Thanks to his impressive resume Dubois enters the fight with 11-0 Joyce as the bookies favourite, but that hasn’t stopped many pundits suggesting that if ‘Dynamite’ doesn’t finish Joyce early it could be ‘Juggernaut’ who leaves victorious.
Asked why so many people were pushing the ‘Dubois early or Joyce late’ narrative, Dubois said: “I’ve prepared for a full 12 rounds, if I have to go the distance. I’m getting ready to break him down, chop him down.”
“I’m going to bring everything I’ve got in me and put it on him. Let’s see if he can handle it.
“I’m sure a lot of people all over the world will be watching, especially with it being free to watch I think a lot of people will be tuning in. Because of the situation around the world, with people at home and stuff, this is the thing to watch.”
So whether it’s the coronavirus pandemic, the unbeaten Joe Joyce or the ‘mole in the camp’ Solomon Dacres, Dubois believes nothing will stand in his way.
“I’m going to be unstoppable. I’m just rising up and up. This is the next step for me and I just know what I can do.”
Dubois and Joyce clash in one of the biggest fights of the year on November 28, live on BT Sport. Everything you need to know about the fight HERE
The Queensberry Lowdown with Daniel Dubois, presented by Unibet, premieres on the Queensberry Official YouTube Channel tonight at 7pm.
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