You'd be forgiven if you didn't know Daniel Dubois entered Saturday's fight with Anthony Joshua as IBF heavyweight champion. Dubois was the underdog and treated as the B-side of the fight in almost every way. That didn't deter Dubois from dominating Joshua en route to a fifth-round knockout to retain his title.
Dubois dominated the action from the opening bell. The champion came out as the aggressor, fighting off the front foot and throwing constant shots at the two-time former champion. That strategy paid off early, with Dubois dropping Joshua with a left hand in the final seconds of the opening frame.
Joshua beat the referee's count but looked to be on unsteady legs. It never got better for Joshua as he was dropped again in the third and fourth rounds before being put down for good in the fifth.
The knockout came just seconds after Joshua's biggest moment of the fight. Joshua had finally connected cleanly on a right hand that wobbled Dubois' legs. As he charged forward trying to flurry and finish Dubois, Joshua left himself wide open to a right hand that dropped him to the canvas and unable to will his body to stand before the referee's count reached 10.
"It's been a long journey," Dubois said after the fight. "I'm grateful to be in this position. ... I'm a gladiator. I'm a warrior to the bitter end. I'm just ready to go. I want to go to the top level of this game and reach my potential."
Joshua made it clear he had no plans to retire after the loss, the third of his career and the second by knockout, and promoter Eddie Hearn said he believed Joshua would execute the rematch clause in his contract to face Dubois again.
"You know what it is, before I came here, I said I'm a fighter for life," Joshua said. "We rolled the dice for success and we came up short but we keep rolling the dice."
Dubois may have to accept the rematch should Joshua and his team follow through on activating the clause, but he also expressed interest in a fight with Oleksandr Usyk. Usyk defeated Dubois by TKO in 2023, retaining the IBF, WBO and WBA titles in the process. Usyk went on to become undisputed champion by defeating Tyson Fury this past May.
The IBF stripped Usyk for going forward with a contractually-mandated rematch with Fury, which is set to take place on Dec. 21, and Dubois was elevated from interim to full champion.
Should Usyk beat Fury in the rematch, Dubois could get his shot at redemption and it could come in the form of a fight to crown an undisputed heavyweight champion.
The undercard saw a mixed bag of results, but the most stunning was Josh Padley scoring a massive upset of Mark Chamberlain in the opening bout of the card. Chamberlain entered the night as the biggest favorite at around -1800. Padley made it look easy in thumping Chamberlain, including a knockdown, en route to a unanimous decision win. Elsewhere, Hamzah Sheeraz made quick work of Tyler Denny in a second-round knockout at middleweight. Sheeraz, 25, moved to 21-0 with 17 knockouts on his resume.
CBS Sports was with you the whole way on Saturday with live results and highlights below.
| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joshua | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | | | 33 | ||||||
| Dubois (c) | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | KO | | | 40 |
Daniel Dubois vs. Anthony Joshua -- Round 5: Joshua landed a bomb of a right hand that had Dubois hurt. Joshua tried to pounce and finish off Dubois but in his reckless pursuit, Joshua left himself wide open for a bomb of a right that put Joshua down for the count. Amazing performance from Dubois! Official result: Daniel Dubois def. Anthony Joshua via KO, Round 5
Daniel Dubois vs. Anthony Joshua -- Round 4: Seconds into the round, Joshua was on the canvas again. Joshua beat the count but and seemed to be dropped again. The referee seemed to waive the fight off but then said it was not a knockdown so the fight continued. Dubois landed a low blow and received a stern warning. Another big left from Dubois had Joshua hurt again. Dubois continued stalking Joshua around the ring, constantly throwing and landing but Joshua kept himself in the fight. Joshua stuck his tongue out at Dubois and landed a few jabs. Unofficial scorecard: 10-8 Dubois (40-33)
Daniel Dubois vs. Anthony Joshua -- Round 3: Joshua looked like his legs were back a big to start the round but an early right hand from Dubois looked like it shook Joshua up a bit. Joshua started popping the jab as his senses recovered. Joshua threw a massive right hand that missed and allowed Dubois to connect with a heavy counter. A Dubois hook and then jab landed clean as Joshua couldn't figure out a way to get out of the way of incoming fire. Joshua tried to use the jab to open up other shots but he took a big left and Joshua's legs were gone. His glove hit the canvas but the referee didn't count it as a knockdown. He did count the knockdown when Joshua slumped on the ropes after a flurry. Joshua beat the count again (using the stool his corner placed in the ring) but looks defeated. Unofficial scorecard: 10-8 Dubois (30-25)
Daniel Dubois vs. Anthony Joshua -- Round 2: Joshua landed a jab and a left hook in the first seconds of the round before Dubois tried to crack with more power shots. Dubois landed a flurry and Joshua's legs looked gone as he ate more big shots. Joshua tried to slow things down, getting space between them and clinching before a heavy jab landed for Dubois. Dubois landed a short right hand but Joshua landed a good right in return. Another round in the bank for Dubois. Unofficial scorecard: 10-9 Dubois (20-17)
Daniel Dubois vs. Anthony Joshua -- Round 1: Dubois came out on the front foot popping jabs. Dubois looked like he buzzed Joshua a bit with a right hand moments into the fight. A big jab from Dubois snapped Joshua's head back. Another jab came moments later as Dubois had a red-hot first minute of the fight. Dubois remained the aggressor, walking forward and putting pressure on Joshua. Joshua tried to get a right hand over the top of Dubois's jab, a jab he kept throwing on entry. Dubois received a few warnings from the referee for leading with his head. Joshua landed his best punch of the round late with an uppercut but then was dropped by Dubois in the final seconds of the round. Huge left hand for Dubois! Joshua beat the count but he looked in a bad way as he was saved by the bell. Unofficial scorecard: 10-8 Dubois
National anthems and fighter introductions are done. All that's left are the final referee's instructions and the bell to get this main event going.
Interestingly, despite being the challenger, Joshua is walking to the ring second this evening. He's clearly the bigger name and the true A-Side but that'd usually be the champion's spot.
Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois are making their walks to the ring. We have finally arrived at the main event. 12 rounds, Dubois' IBF heavyweight championship on the line with Joshua having a chance to become a three-time world heavyweight champion.
