Fight fans who either attend the September 21st fight between Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois (and a record 96,000 paid gate is set to shatter Wembley records) or tune in at home are almost certain to be treated to a big KO – whoever wins. Not too many people think this all-British battle of punchers will go the distance. Joshua, 28-3(25), is coming off a destruct and destroy job on Francis Ngannoul, while Dubois, 21-2(20), is coming off a career-best win, a stoppage win over Filip Hrgovic.
AJ, the far more experienced fighter of the two, is the favorite to win on the night, but “DDD” has his supporters. One of these people is heavyweight contender Zhilei Zhang. Zhang, who feels Joshua is reluctant, even scared to fight him (in a pro rematch, the two having boxed as amateurs at London 2012, with AJ winning in points), says Dubois will “shock the world” by upsetting Joshua later this month.
“I personally favor Daniel Dubois to pull this off because he is on the surge,” Zhang told BoxNation. “He is hungry, he is young and he has the fire in him. He had a really beautiful knockout victory over Filip Hrgovic last time so I really have my faith in the underdog. We are literally three weeks away and I believe he will shock the world. I look forward to that fight and it may end with a knockout. Joshua’s chin is always a question mark in my humble opinion. We will see what happens.”
While a Dubois win over Joshua wouldn’t quite be “shock the world” material, it would be an upset for sure, and a win over the former two-time heavyweight champ would put Dubois, the defending IBF heavyweight champ, in a very good place. Dubois has actually said that he aims to beat Joshua and then “reign for a long time.”
If Dubois can defeat AJ, the 26 year old (Dubois turns 27 this week) will be smack, bang in line for nothing but huge fights. Maybe Dubois could fight Zhang at some point? Currently, Dubois is said to be undergoing intense training and prep, especially working on his mental strength and focus. It could prove to be a slugfest in three weeks, or maybe the fight will be over within a veritable flash.
Either way, not many people think Joshua-Dubois goes anywhere near the distance. If Zhang is right, though, will Dubois pull it off?
