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Anthony Joshua praises the potential of opponent Daniel Dubois

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Anthony Joshua immediately saw the potential of Daniel Dubois during their first meeting.

The 34-year-old will face Dubois in his first defence of his IBF heavyweight title at Wembley Stadium on September 21.

Joshua is fighting to join the ranks of three-time heavyweight world champions Muhammad Ali and Lennox Lewis, as well as to stay on track to fight the winner of December’s rematch between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk; Dubois is fighting to displace him as a likely opponent for Usyk or Fury, as well as to secure his most prestigious and grandest victory yet.

It was inevitable, given that Dubois is eight years younger than Joshua. The pair took completely different paths to a fight that, although Dubois showed promise, never seemed likely. The teenage Dubois had once watched Joshua, then the best heavyweight in the world, at Team GB’s facility in Sheffield, and when they sparred, Joshua decided it was Dubois’s time.

Unlike Joshua, Dubois chose not to pursue the Olympic glory that could have accelerated his career as Joshua once did, and instead turned professional at a much younger age, giving him a very different education.

When they enter the ring at Wembley in September, it is likely to be a close fight that could make it tough to determine which of them won the gold medal in London 2012. Joshua will also appreciate the significant progress Dubois has made since the silent teenager he once knew.

“I don’t really look at someone’s character in that situation,” he said. “Just from sparring, he was a good fighter — very talented — and he knew his way around the ring. I think he has a lot of potential going forward.

“Look at Usyk, he doesn’t look like anything special” [as a character], but he can fucking fight. Fury has a powerful character, but I don’t look at things like that. When it comes to fighting, Dubois can fight.

“I would advise anyone to go to the Olympics. I told Moses Itauma that he should because he has so much potential and there is no better platform for him to turn professional. I would advise anyone to try the Olympic route.”

Joshua and Dubois were embroiled in a heated confrontation on Wednesday when they met to tape promotional footage for their upcoming fight.

The confrontation reminded him of the intensity he has maintained despite the success he has enjoyed over the years since 2016, when he first became world champion by dethroning Charles Martin and winning the IBF title, which he will soon try to reclaim. In 2016, he was the most promising fighter in a category in which Usyk had not yet competed and in which Fury, Deontay Wilder and Wladimir Klitschko were the top three fighters – similar to the era in which Dubois was struggling to establish himself.

“I can’t believe it,” Joshua said. “This is crazy. I used to be a rising star, and now I’m fighting these guys.

“I want to know what happened. I said I would fight for the rest of my life – I’m still newborn.

“I can’t believe how quickly it’s gone. And I can still speak properly; I’m not drunk. How is it possible that I’m 34 and haven’t had many punishments – I think it’s crazy? I’ve got a lot of years left in me to fight, but it’s a blessing how far we’ve come.

“I was with [former Fury opponent] John McDermott the other day and I remember visiting him at leisure centers… and how far boxing and being a part of the age of social media and YouTube have come. It was a blessing.”

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Boxing

Manny Pacquiao vs. Mario Barrios is not dead and buried yet

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Manny Pacquiao vs Barrios PBC

LAS VEGAS — Team Barrios is still eager to fight Manny Pacquiao when they “take care of things” on November 15 when they face Abel Ramos.

Mario Barrios and Abel Ramos fight for the WBC welterweight world title in one of the biggest combat sports events of the year – Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

Bob Santos, Barrios’ trainer, recently told World Boxing News that they are in camp and focusing on Ramos.

“There’s nothing better than Netflix,” Santos told us.

With approximately 275 million subscribers worldwide, the possible reach of the Tyson vs Paul event on Netflix could make it one of the most watched boxing events of all time.

Ramos has been in the ring with Maurice Hooker, Regis Prograis, Ivan Baranchyk, Jamal James and Yordenis Ugas, but since losing to the Cuban boxer in 2020, he has only two wins in four fights.

Barrios and Ramos are one fight out of four so far, alongside the highly anticipated rematch of Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano.

Ramos is quite a surprise opponent for Barrios, as both Santos and Manny Pacquiao’s representative, Sean Gibbons, have been talking to World Boxing News all summer about a substantial fight between them later in the year, possibly even at a Premier Boxing Champions event.

“[The Pacquiao fight] for some reason it couldn’t come to fruition,” Santos told us. “We were in the middle of negotiations. I know Pacquiao wanted to fight. We wanted to fight. This would have been a great world title fight, but they just couldn’t get it together in time.

“This opportunity came up with Netflix and Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson,” Santos added. “And this is not just a boxing event, but one of the biggest events. The numbers will be crazy. Everyone loves Mike Tyson and everyone wants to support him in many ways. Of course there is publicity, especially with Jake Paul. This event – ​​it is huge.”

Even though Barrios will fight in the middle of next month, his team would still be content with a fight against Pacquiao. So they know they have to “take care of business” and maintain the championship.

It was this WBC world title that Pacquiao reportedly motivated the Filipino legend to return to the ring and attempt to break his own record as the division’s oldest champion.

“The only reason why Pacquiao [would] Of course, to come back at this stage is to make history and it would have to be a world title,” Santos told us.

“So if we don’t take care of business and keep the world championship, obviously this fight will fail.

“So first we have to focus 100% on Abel Ramos,” concluded Santos.

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“I was an enforcer in a gang,” admits Chris Eubank Jr

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CHRIS Eubank Jr currently mixes on the fringes of the world boxing scene, but he used to mix things up in a different arena. The boxer from Brighton, who will face Kamil Szeremeta on October 12, revealed video showing he was an enforcer in a gang.

“You just have to deal with it. You’re a child, you don’t know better. That’s one of the reasons I moved to Las Vegas, to get away from this scene, this lifestyle,” Eubank Jr. said.

Although Chris has now managed to escape his father’s shadow and gang life to pursue a career on his own, as quickly as things change, some things remain the same. The location, venue and pay packages may be different for the 33-3 (24 KO) pro, but the competitive spirit and desire for the scrap are still there.

“I liked the competition. I love challenges. I’ve got a guy in front of me trying to eliminate me, and I’m trying to eliminate him. And who will get there first? Who will strike the first blow? It’s always been just sexy to me. And that just turned me on. I don’t know why.

When it comes to street laws, the only way to prepare is to be ready, alert and trained for a fight. Born fighters often grow up in extreme poverty, where violence is the only universal language, and in the case of boxing, it is also a way out of the hood. Grainy footage of Chris taking part in an illegal war circulated years ago and now shows what his life has evolved from.

I don’t know how it happened, but I was a street kid. I was a man of the road who went home every evening to a million-pound mansion. It doesn’t make sense,” Eubank Jr. mused.

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Joselito Velazquez knocks out former title challenger Andres Campos in Cancun

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by Francisco Salazar |

Joselito Velazquez made his presence felt in the novel weight class with a decisive victory over the former world title challenger.

Velazquez defeated Andres Campos twice en route to an impressive knockout victory Friday night at the Poliforum in his adopted hometown of Cancun, Mexico. The victory earned Velazquez (20-1-1, 13 knockouts) the 115-pound regional championship belt and the WBC world ranking.

About halfway through the first round, a combination momentarily staggered Campos, who fell back against the ropes. Velazquez followed the punch, but Campos was able to survive the attack by clenching his fists or fending off the attacks in spurts.

Velazquez scored a knockdown in the second round, dropping Campos with a main left hook to the head. Campos defeated the count and again survived the onslaught of hooks and crosses that Velazquez threw after the action resumed.

Undeterred, Campos gave it his all in rounds four and five, trying to take Velazquez down to land some of his punches.

The fight ended in the latter part of the sixth round when a left hook to the head forced Campos back into the corner. Velazquez threw the combination while Campos was already on the court, prompting referee Javier Espinoza to immediately stop the fight (2:09).

Velazquez, who hails from Oaxaca, Mexico, previously fought on March 22, defeating Luis Araujo Arellano en route to a unanimous decision victory. On November 24, Velazquez defeated Pablo Carrillo by decision after 10 one-sided rounds.

The victories over Arrellano, Carrillo and now Campos all came in Cancun.

The 31-year-old has won his last five fights since a unanimous decision loss to former world champion Cristofer Rosales.

Velazquez has been trained for the past few years under Eddy Reynoso, who also trains Ring Magazine super middleweight champion and unified world titleholder Canelo Alvarez. He represented Mexico at the 2016 Olympics.

Campos drops to 16-2-1, 5 KOs. In his previous fight, which took place on May 18 in his hometown of Santiago, Chile, Campos fought Edinson Martinez to a majority draw.

The 28-year-old Campos, who is coached by Tony Tolj, challenged then-IBF flyweight world titleholder Clear Edwards on June 10 last year, losing by unanimous decision. Campos returned to action three months later, defeating Ben Ligas before winning by seventh-round knockout.

In the co-main event, junior featherweight Celex Castro, who also resides in Cancun, improved to 18-0, 14 KOs, defeating Argentine Ckari Cani Mansilla twice en route to a third-round knockout victory.

Castro dropped Mansilla (17-4, 12 KO) once in round two and again in round three before the fight was stopped at 2:34.

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