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Anthony Joshua shares his side of Daniel Dubois sparring story after ‘lights out’ claim

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Anthony Joshua has told his side of the story about the infamous fight between him and Daniel Dubois. The IBF British heavyweight title fight at Wembley on September 21 was dominated by rumours of a sparring session in 2016.

During one session at the GB Performance Institute in Sheffield, Joshua, who beat Dillian Whyte to win the vacant British heavyweight title and later won the IBF heavyweight title against Charles Martin, was almost knocked out by the teenage Dubois just a year before his breakthrough victory over Wladimir Klitschko.

It was claimed that the 18-year-old “Dynamite” almost knocked out Joshua during a gym workout, with the fire inadvertently fanned by Dubois’ refusal to address the incident. But Joshua had grown tired of the “narrative” ahead of their clash.

Joshua remembered his side of the mast to Sky Sports where he expressed his surprise at the apparent knockout. “He just hit me with a good punch. I was standing on my feet. I don’t know where this whole story about someone turning off my lights came from,” Joshua said.

“There were a lot of people at the gym that day too, and some people came out and said, ‘No, nothing.’ [happened]but either way, people say what they say.

AJ admitted he wasn’t surprised by the conflicting stories that emerged from their IBF heavyweight title fight: “With me, it’s always been an inch makes a mile. But everything’s fine. Everything’s fine.”

Dubois enters the fight on the back of back-to-back knockout wins over Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic – claiming the interim IBF heavyweight title against the latter – but the 27-year-old’s chance at the biggest stage quickly came after his disappointing loss to Oleksandr Usyk in August last year.

But “Dynamite” is on a mission to become the recent face of British heavyweight boxing. “AJ has been the king for a long time and tonight I have to be the king killer and that’s my goal, that’s my mission,” Dubois said.

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“I’m learning more about myself as a fighter, as a person, I’m coming out of the gloomy into the delicate, I’m improving in every way as a fighter and an athlete. I’m ready for this and I’m ready to go.”

Joshua replied that he would put on a show and said: “I’m not saying he has a chance to do it on September 21st because sometimes what you say comes true but I’m not going to let that happen, I’m going to show you how good I am.

“Whether it’s in the sparring ring or the fighting ring, I will not allow anyone to abuse me or try to knock me out. No way.”

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UK Boxing

Frank Warren Talks Daniel Dubois’ Chances To Fight Tyson Fury After Anthony Joshua Knockout

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Frank Warren has said he will not interfere with a potential superfight between Daniel Dubois and Tyson Fury, despite it being “awkward” to watch his two top heavyweights go head-to-head.

Dubois, 27, defended his IBF heavyweight title in spectacular style, knocking out Anthony Joshua in the fifth round during their fight at Wembley Stadium on Saturday night.

Dynamite defied all odds and thwarted Joshua’s fight with Fury by landing a right punch on AJ that knocked him out.

Fury is scheduled to face division king Oleksandr Usyk in a rematch on December 21, and Dubois has expressed interest in fighting the winner.

Warren, who manages both Dubois and Fury, admitted: “I’ll tell you honestly, I would be in a very, very awkward position if I had to fight that. I would have a problem with that.

“If that’s what they wanted and the business required it, that’s their business. It’s not something I would push. If there’s an offer that makes sense and they want to do it, that’s their business.”

Saudi boxing mogul Turki Alalshikh had ambitious plans for Joshua to face Fury next year, regardless of whether the Gypsy King beats Usyk or not.

Alalshikh envisioned Fury defeating Usyk to win the WBA, WBC and WBO belts, while Joshua would defeat Dubois to win the IBF title, which would set the stage for an undisputed clash between the Brits.

However, Dubois’ victory has dealt a stern blow to those plans, although Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn insists his client is still hopeful of a fight with Fury.

Hall of Fame promoter Warren said, “Everybody was planning on Tyson fighting AJ, and I told them it wasn’t going to happen. I told them straight up. I’m not stupid. I’ve been doing this for a long time.”

Warren defeated two-time champion Joshua, who turns 35 next month, to earn a rematch with Dubois despite suffering a one-sided defeat from his younger opponent.

He added: “I think it’s something that needs to be considered. Everything is on the table.”

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UK Boxing

Daniel Dubois Accused of ‘Two Illegal Punches’ Before Anthony Joshua Knockout

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Eddie Hearn has made accusations against Daniel Dubois, claiming he threw two illegal punches during his fight with Anthony Joshua.

Despite being knocked out in the fifth round by Dubois, Hearn pointed out moments where Dynamite seemed to overreact, most notably claiming that Joshua was hit “in the testicles” in the third or fourth round of the fight, which took place on Saturday night.

He expressed his frustration that Joshua did not take full advantage of the time available to him to recover, but also praised Dubois for the decisive victory.

Hearn summed up Joshua’s resilience after the knockout: “I told him he must be proud that he even made it back in the fight because after the second round, for me, the fight was over, it was over.

“Even after the last knockout, he’s trying to get back up.”

The Matchroom boss added: “He couldn’t have tried to do one more inch. When you do that, you can look yourself in the mirror. He came to the end in the trenches. People want to talk about getting down on one knee and spitting out the mouthguard.”

Hearn further stated that the unfortunate low blows could have been due to inexperience, saying: “Listen, when Daniel Dubois hit him in the balls in the third or fourth round, I was yelling at AJ to take the full five minutes.

“It’s actually a bit of inexperience. At that moment, when he couldn’t stand, he was hit full force in the chestnuts.

“He told the referee, ‘It’s all right, let’s go,’ and I said, ‘What are you doing?’ Then it happened again. He just came out to fight tonight. It was a hell of a fight. As devastated as we are, Daniel deserves a lot of credit.”

“Tonight is his coronation night. Without being elevated to interim champion, tonight is the night he showed he is a true world champion. He also has a great future ahead of him.

“Of course I still want to fight. We tried to succeed and we failed. Do we run away now or live to fight another day? I am a warrior. Always walk with your head held high.

“We’ve rolled the dice. It’s 13 world title fights, not all of them have been successful but they’ve all been fun and entertaining. We want to make history in British boxing and I think we’re doing that.”

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UK Boxing

Anthony Joshua shows off seconds before Daniel Dubois crashes in fresh footage

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Anthony Joshua showed courage and determination to fight Daniel Dubois all the way to the fifth round, and his belief that he could come back and win the fight was evident right up until the final moment he was put on the mat.

Joshua’s plan went to waste when he was floored by a powerful right hook from Dubois in the first round. According to his promoter, Eddie Hearn, from that point on he fought with “heart” and showed it in spades.

Further knockdowns followed in the third and fourth rounds, and it took Dubois quite a while to finish the job against the resilient AJ.

The knockout blow came in the fifth round, and boxing fans around the world and the 96,000 spectators at Wembley were stunned by the blow that sent Joshua crashing to the ground with greater force than ever before.

Crowd footage circulating on social media show the moments leading up to Dubois’ devastating right hook from a fresh angle. And 16 seconds before it landed, with his back against the wall, Joshua showed off by glaring and sticking his tongue out at a spectator.

The 34-year-old initially showed off his confidence by landing a precise right punch on Dubois. But when he moved in, the fight was over for good.

Sensing an opportunity and moving forward, AJ landed a hook, but before it could land, Dubois’ tiny, pointed punch connected right to the chin. The 27-year-old defended his IBF heavyweight title, although he may have to fight Joshua again to retain it.

“I think he’ll exercise that rematch clause, I think that’s for sure,” Hearn told Matchroom shortly after. “He’ll need some rest, it’s a unsafe fight, he’s just gaining confidence all the time.

“He’ll believe he can hurt Dubois, he’ll believe he can beat him. But full credit to Daniel Dubois, he deserves all the credit, it was a great performance.”

Hearn continued at the post-fight press conference: “I think 2025 is going to be an fascinating year for Anthony Joshua, one way or another, but he’s definitely going to come back and whether it’s a fight with Daniel Dubois, Tyson Fury, whoever, you’re going to have a good time.”

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