Daniel Dubois joined this era’s elite crop of heavyweights when he secured a devastating fifth-round stoppage victory over Anthony Joshua at Wembley Stadium.
The 27-year-old got the tactics spot on, in fact, pressurizing Joshua to the point where his domestic rival’s leaky defense had succumbed to his relentless front foot aggression.
Furthermore, Daniel Dubois cemented his status as the IBF world heavyweight champion after entering the showdown with the interim belt he won following his victory over Filip Hrgovic.
But even without the belt strapped around his waist, Dubois has now proven himself to be a bona fide, world-class operator, capable of causing any heavyweight nightmares.
Daniel Dubois’ trainer Don Charles blasts Oleksandr Usyk
Several bouts before his career-best win against Anthony Joshua, Dubois had been stopped in the ninth round by Oleksandr Usyk after dropping his vastly experienced opponent earlier in the contest.
Of course, the jury is still out on whether the punch that he landed was a body shot or low blow but, regardless, the Brit’s head coach Don Charles is convinced he knows the truth.
“Mr Usyk is fake,” Charles told talkSPORT. “[He’s an] exceptional boxer, masterful boxer, a genius of what he’s done and what he can do. But he’s a fake and he’s a liar and a cheat.”
“This is going out to Usyk – if you believe in the same God that I and the world population do, what we refer to as God, one of the ten commandments is you cannot cheat. That’s against one of the ten commandments.
“Make your mind up, do you worship God or not? Because if you do, the cheating and the acting he did when Daniel dropped him, he should win an Oscar for that acting.”
Daniel Dubois shoots up the Ring Magazine heavyweight rankings
Dubois has now been awarded the second-place slot in the Ring Magazine’s coveted heavyweight rankings, with Joshua dropping down to seventh.
The Londoner sits just below Tyson Fury, who is bidding to reclaim his Ring Magazine prize from Oleksandr Usyk on December 21.
As for Joseph Parker – who is breathing down Dubois’ neck in third place – a shot at the new sheriff in town would certainly be on the New Zealander’s radar following his victory over Zhilei Zhang.
Joshua, meanwhile, looks ahead to a long rebuilding process before he is able to reach the upper echelons of his division once again.