Dubois Stops Hrgovic, Eyes Joshua Showdown at Wembley
On Saturday, Daniel Dubois delivered a stirring seventh-round stoppage of the previously unbeaten Filip Hrgović, quickly leading to confirmation that talks will occur for a showdown against fellow UK countryman and former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua on September 21 at Wembley Stadium.
Dubois’ promoter, Frank Warren, stated that the 26-year-old IBF interim heavyweight champion will seek the Riyadh Season-backed bout against Joshua at Wembley, where Joshua has fought four times – including his memorable stoppage of Wladimir Klitschko before 90,000 fans in 2017.
“Dubois is the interim champion and the new mandatory contender, but it’s ‘too early’ to determine whether the IBF will order Joshua-Dubois for the full belt.” – IBF president Daryl Peoples
However, it remains unclear whether the IBF will order the bout as a full heavyweight title fight. IBF president Daryl Peoples told BoxingScene in a text message on Monday that he has not discussed the matter of the heavyweights moving forward and that IBF rules stipulate that its champion is not able to participate in a rematch when his mandatory defense is due.
This potentially applies to Oleksandr Usyk, who became the undisputed heavyweight champion in May when defeating Tyson Fury via split decision in Saudi Arabia. Then-mandatory challenger Hrgović was targeting a fight with Joshua for the IBF title, forcing the organization to affirm its rules following his two-year wait as their leading contender.
Usyk has since filed a request for an exception, asking that his scheduled rematch with Fury on December 21 remains an undisputed title fight. With Warren promoting both Fury and Dubois, it remains to be seen how fervently he will push for the full IBF belt to be on the line.
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