In some interesting heavyweight news, it’s been reported by Sky Sports that Daniel Dubois has “agreed” to take on Frank Sanchez in an IBF final eliminator. As fans may know, Cuba’s Sanchez saw fights with Efe Ajagba and Moses Itauma fail to get off the ground, so down the IBF rankings Sanchez and his team went. And now, Dubois – coming off that nasty, one-sided KO loss to Oleksandr Usyk – has stepped in and said yes to the fight.
Now, the two sides will have until October 22 to thrash out a deal. But this fight, if it happens (and it looks as though it will, and credit to “DDD” for agreeing to come back with such a testing fight) could prove fascinating. Sanchez is a slick operator, while Dubois, despite his loss to Usyk, remains one of the most powerful young heavyweights out there.
Sanchez has bounced back from his stoppage loss to Agit Kabayel, while Dubois now has to come back from the third loss of his career, with Joe Joyce and Usyk, in a previous meeting, having beaten him.
It will be interesting to see where Sanchez-Dubois lands, whether or not it’s in the UK. But Frank Warren, who, of course, looks after Dubois, will no doubt be trying his best to secure hometown rights for the fight.
Again, credit to Dubois and to Sanchez (who has shown again he will fight just about anybody) for agreeing to this fight. Who wins, and how? A good case can be made for the Brit winning, as can one be made for the Cuban winning.
The winner will be in line to challenge Usyk (should Usyk not decide to retire), which would mean, in the event of a Dubois win, a Usyk-Dubois III. Now, how on earth could that fight sell??