Just when it appeared that heavyweight boxing was about to go mainstream again, with intriguing fights between Tyson Fury, Detonay Wilder and Anthony Joshua all in prospect, the sport’s torturous internal politics have put on hold plans for fights between any of the three heavyweight champions of the world. Instead, Fury is set to fight Tom Schwarz on 16 June and Wilder will face Dominic Breazeale on 18 May. Joshua’s next fight will be on 1 June, but who he will meet in the ring is yet to be announced after his original opponent, Jarrell Miller, failed a drugs test. Whoever it is, they will have little time to prepare. The cumulative sense of disappointment within the boxing fraternity is palpable.
Step forward two men who have been on a collision course since turning professional. Although not contenders for world titles quite yet, they have demonstrable potential and will battle it out for the British heavyweight title. Daniel Dubois and Joe Joyce are both heavy hitters and will go toe for toe in the ring this summer. Crucially, negotiations were made easier this week when Joyce mirrored Dubois by signing a deal to be represented by Frank Warren and for his fights to be shown on BT Sport.
At 21 years old, Dubois has been heralded as the next major British boxing heavyweight star, a future world champion who lets his fists do the talking and holds a record of nine knockout victories in 10 fights. By contrast, Joyce had a much longer amateur career, winning a silver medal at the 2016 Olympic Games. Since turning professional, the 33-year-old has earned eight victories, all inside the distance. His most recent victory came against former WBC world heavyweight champion Bermane Stiverne in February. Although Joyce has the greater experience and has faced higher calibre opponents, don’t be surprised if Dubois edges what will be a bruising encounter.
Leave a Reply