Dubois win sharpens heavyweight title race

Daniel Dubois has strengthened his position among heavyweight boxing’s leading contenders after stopping Fabio Wardley in two rounds at London’s O2 Arena, setting up a crowded race for unification fights as the division’s biggest names approach the end of their careers. [1]

The victory was far more emphatic than their first meeting in May. Dubois, 29, retained his title and can now look towards a possible rematch with IBF champion Filip Hrgovic or a fight with the winner of Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua’s scheduled December bout.

Hrgovic entered the ring after Saturday’s fight to make his interest clear. Dubois stopped the Croatian in June 2024, but Hrgovic has since won the vacant IBF title. He also has a mandatory defence against Cuba’s Frank Sanchez to contend with, and promoter Frank Warren is working towards staging that fight in Croatia early next year.

“All those names are there to do a unification fight next year and that’s what we’ll be working on,” Warren said.

The Fury-Joshua contest is expected to take place at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, with the main event due in the early hours of 12 December. About 80,000 tickets sold out within an hour, according to the BBC. Warren says the vacant WBA ‘super’ title will be at stake, although WBA ‘regular’ champion Murat Gassiev has called for the winner to face him.

Elsewhere, unbeaten Agit Kabayel will make his first defence of the WBC title against Nelson Hysa on 28 November. A unification fight with Dubois in 2027 could raise the German champion’s profile.

Oleksandr Usyk, who vacated the WBA, WBC and IBF titles in June, has indicated he wants one last fight before retiring. Rico Verhoeven wants a rematch after losing to Usyk by an 11th-round stoppage, and says he has accepted an offer to fight Deontay Wilder on the Fury-Joshua undercard. Wilder has not agreed to the bout and has also been linked with cruiserweight Jai Opetaia.

Wardley’s defeat raises questions about his next move. The BBC reports that a lower-ranked opponent could offer a route back, while noting that he would need to make technical adjustments to challenge the division’s elite again.

Moses Itauma, 21, is also rebuilding after his first professional defeat, against Hrgovic. Warren expects him to return in January against credible opposition. The priority, the BBC reports, will be improving his stamina, pacing and tactical patience over 12 rounds before another title opportunity.

With Usyk, Fury and Joshua nearing the ends of their careers, the division has several potential headline fights. Whether champions can meet before mandatory defences, rematches and negotiations intervene remains uncertain.