Daniel Dubois gate crashed Oleksandr Usyk’s moment following his victory over Tyson Fury last Saturday night in Riyadh.
A Poorly Timed Request
It was off-putting and low for Dubois to crash Usyk’s party, interrupting him being interviewed in his moment of glory after his 12-round unanimous decision win over ‘The Gypsy King’ at the Kingdom Arena.
The IBF heavyweight champion Dubois was allowed into the ring to use the spotlight to ask for a rematch against WBA, WBC, and WBO champion Usyk (23-0, 12 KOs), who knocked him out in the ninth round on August 26, 2023, in Wroclaw, Poland.
Dubois could have waited until later to ask Usyk rather than getting in the ring to confront him. Usyk should have told him to take a hike and that he wanted to enjoy his victory without someone trying to weasel a fight.
It’s premature for Dubois to be asking Usyk for a fight because he still has a title defense against Joseph Parker ahead of him on February 22nd in Riyadh. He needs to win that fight before he can focus on a unification against Usyk.
Usyk said he would grant Dubois’ wish for a rematch if Turki Alalshikh agreed to make the fight.
Post Fight Confrontation
Daniel Dubois: “Usyk, I want my revenge. Well done tonight. I want my revenge for the robbery last time. Let’s get it. Let’s go,” said Dubois inside the ring, calling out unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk moments after his victory over Tyson Fury last Saturday night in Riyadh. “Frank [Warren], make it happen.”
Oleksandr Usyk: “His Excellency, make me fight against Daniel Dubois. Thank you so much. Yeah, no problem. I’m ready. Next fight, no problem.”
A rematch with Anthony Joshua would pay more for Usyk than a second fight with Dubois, who isn’t a big star outside of the UK. Either a rematch with Joshua or a trilogy with Fury would be a better fight for Usyk.