Daniel Dubois entered the ring on Saturday determined to put Anthony Joshua on the defensive. In a bold strategic shift from his past notable fights, Dubois immediately pressed the action. He didn't just dip his toe in the water; there was no feeling out process. He marched forward behind his jab and power punches.
Dubois and his trainer Don Charles prepared a game plan that sought to exploit Joshua's potential weaknesses and minimize Dubois' own shortcomings. Joshua had often started fights cautiously; that could be taken advantage of. In addition, Dubois hadn't fared well when he had started with caution. Before aligning with Charles, Dubois had been dropped by Kevin Lerena in the first round, picked apart by Oleksandr Usyk early in their fight and struggled at mid-range with Joe Joyce's jab. Even in recent victories with Charles in the corner, he had been outhustled by Jarrell Miller in the early rounds and he had absorbed dozens of big right hands by Filip Hrgovic.
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| Dubois (standing) knocking down Joshua Photo courtesy of Mark Robinson (Matchroom) |
Thus, Charles and Dubois selected a bold strategy on Saturday: they would go right at Anthony Joshua, despite AJ's considerable heavyweight power. They were determined for Dubois to make his own luck; there was no use waiting around for something bad to happen. And the gambit was immediately effective. By the end of the first round, Dubois had knocked down Joshua with a whipping right hand. Joshua was hurt badly and was never the same during the rest of the fight.
Ultimately Dubois would stop Joshua in the fifth round, scoring four knockdowns in the fight, including a pulverizing left during a combination in the third round and a counter right hook in the fifth that ended the match.
That Dubois won as a sizable underdog was shocking enough, but how he went about it – bludgeoning Joshua over five rounds, a comprehensive beating – was something more; it was startling and thrilling. Joshua had been beaten before, but no one had wiped the floor with him like this. Even the great Usyk couldn't get him on the canvas. Remember, in Joshua's prior knockout loss to Andy Ruiz, it was Joshua who had scored the first knockdown in the fight.
And for whatever criticisms that one could levy on Joshua during the fight, it was Dubois who forced those shortcomings to manifest. If Dubois hadn't been determined to counter Joshua's jab with hard right hands, then Joshua may have gotten away with throwing a lazy jab early in the fight. If Dubois didn't insist on pushing the pace in the fight, then Joshua's ponderous movement may have been far less of a problem.
Furthermore, by the end of the first, Joshua was already a diminished fighter. The hard right hand that had dropped him had caused serious damage. And his body started to give out by the third round after the right uppercut/left hand combination just before the knockdown.
It's certainly possible that if Joshua was given time to establish his preferred work rate and distance that the fight could have worked out in his favor. But Dubois never allowed him to have any comfort in the fight. Even during Joshua's best moments in the fight, the hard right hands in the fifth round, it took only one more big shot for Dubois to end the match. That's how damaged Joshua was. He could not beat the count in the fifth; he had taken too much punishment.
There are lots of other notable aspects about Dubois' performance: the crispness of his jab; his varied punch arsenal that included left hooks, right uppercuts, and straight and looping right hands; his ability to defend himself against Joshua's jab. But ultimately, what won him the fight for me was the boldness of his gameplan and his execution of it. Yes, he was much sharper defensively than in previous fights. Yes, his countering ability has improved tremendously under Charles (this was their fourth fight together). And all of that is fine and dandy. But it was the belief that was most important to me. This was a young fighter who had finally overcome his losses, who now had the confidence to perform at his highest level.
Through Dubois' defeats and comeback fights, he had learned a lot about himself. He realized that he could take big punches. Against Miller and Hrgovic, he now grasped that he had the chin and the power to win firefights. And even more importantly, he now knew that he could reverse the tide in a fight. Even if he was losing or getting hit with big shots, that didn't mean the fight was forever lost.
Whereas Dubois was unwilling to sell out for the win after hurting Usyk (low blow or not), against Joshua, Dubois would not be denied. This was his moment. He was going to step on the gas and not let the opportunity fall through his fingers. And even when Joshua had success in the fifth, Dubois was still thinking about offense, how to place that one final blow. He wasn't spooked by Joshua's big punches. Ultimately, he realized that they presented him with an opportunity, and he took it!
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| Dubois after the victory Photo courtesy of Mark Robinson (Matchroom) |
The unlikely story of Dubois' rise in boxing is a reminder that fighters can make significant improvements after losses, even knockouts. Dubois made wholesale changes after his second defeat. He improved technically with his punching form and his defense. But most importantly, he had matured in the ring psychologically. He could now deal with duress. He wasn't afraid of a big shot. He had the confidence to overcome scary moments. He believed in his power and ability.
Dubois ultimately emerged from those dark places as a better version of himself in the ring. But he had been willing to do the work. He had reflected on what had caused him to fall short and he let this evaluation process lead him to new paths in his career.
The effect of these changes was evident on Saturday He would no longer be intimidated by who was across the ring from him. He would not allow his opponents too much respect. He would keep his poise. Finally...he belonged.
And in the see-saw of Anthony Joshua's career (and let's not dismiss the chance of another comeback from him), AJ was once again on Saturday at the bottom. It was one of those fights where it all went wrong for him. He never had a chance to establish a rhythm or work his way into the fight. His opponent had outthought and outfought him.
Although Joshua had looked good in
his recent fights with trainer Ben Davison, he had predictable patterns in his career when facing punchers. He didn't like
to be pressed early in fights and he didn't want to be in firefights. He
liked control. And he had not been ready to assert his control in round one against
Dubois. He had expected Dubois to be more cautious, that
they would both see their way into the fight. And his whole team was unprepared
for what followed.
I keep going back to the "making your own luck" concept. This was the key to the fight for me. By being assertive from the opening bell, Dubois never allowed Joshua to gain a foothold. But Dubois had laid the groundwork for his success years earlier. He assessed his problems objectively. He found solutions. As a result, he was able to ascend to a new level physically, technically, and emotionally in the ring. He had manifested these changes. Against Joshua, he was now ready for anyone in the heavyweight division. And he proved it.
