Published: 16:30 EDT, 18 October 2026 | Updated: 16:30 EDT, 18 October 2026
"Bring him on," roared Daniel Dubois on the banks of the Thames in the dark hours of Sunday morning, offering an unequivocal challenge when asked if he would dare to step into the ring for a third time against the generational great who has already bested him twice.
Oleksandr Usyk, currently existing in a state of professional limbo somewhere between vacating all of the heavyweight titles and drifting toward semi-retirement, remains a tactical genius of the sport. The Ukrainian master may not fall readily into the trap baited so audaciously by the newly transformed British champion.
Ukraine’s celebrated war hero will undoubtedly have watched Dubois utterly annihilate the gallant Fabio Wardley on Saturday night. In doing so, Usyk will have recognised that the fighter known as "Dynamite" Daniel is no longer the callow, inexperienced youth he wiped the canvas with a couple of times during his historic reign as the undisputed world champion.
Promoter Frank Warren is rarely a man given to understatement, yet when he remarked that "Daniel has matured now," he was merely scratching the surface of a profound physical and psychological transformation. It might still be a considerable stretch to compare Dubois to the once terrifying Sonny Liston, but to those rival titleholders whose belts he urgently needs if he is to claim the undisputed crown, the Londoner is rapidly starting to look like a genuine monster of the division.
"I want them all," declared the WBO heavyweight champion, setting his sights firmly on the ultimate unification of the division. His immediate vision encompasses the winner of the high-stakes December blockbuster between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua—a bout that will also carry a WBA title—as well as other formidable champions across the sanctioning bodies.
The ultimate availability of these elite fighters, particularly that of AJ or the Gypsy King, will no doubt be heavily dictated by the towering financial incentives flowing from the Aladdin’s Cave of Saudi Arabian backing, which has radically funded and transformed the landscape of boxing’s mega-fights in recent seasons. Should that financial machinery continue to turn, Warren is enthusiastically promising a 2027 bursting with monthly heavyweight spectacles.
Such events would be as lustily anticipated as Dubois’s second demolition of Fabio Wardley. At the remarkably rapid conclusion of that Saturday night showcase, another packed crowd at The O2 arena was visibly switching its allegiance. The initial romanticism surrounding Wardley’s fairy-tale emergence from the world of white-collar boxing gave way to the cold, hard realisation that Great Britain now possesses a genuine world-beater in the absolute ascendancy.
Indeed, Dubois may well be evolving into more of a box-office star than the famously monosyllabic Sonny Liston ever managed to be. That evolution was clearly evident in his accurate, bravura prediction of a "bash and smash" slaughter of Wardley, coupled with the most jovial and relaxed media conference of his professional career thus far.
Having carefully nursed his immense confidence within the protective cocoon of the Dubois family circle for years, Daniel now occupies a metaphorical mansion of his own, complete with the trappings of success including a collection of high-performance sports cars. The days of playing Mister Shy Guy are firmly behind him, though he has emerged none the less likeable for his newfound self-assurance.
The definitive transition to full manhood was impressively rounded off across his two bruising encounters with Wardley. That grueling rivalry included a miraculous recovery from two early knockdowns in their first, Fight of the Year-contending battle before Dubois rallied to secure a brutal 11th-round stoppage victory.
Saturday night’s sequel was even more emphatic. The onslaught was triggered instantly by a staggering right-hand blow just 17 seconds after the opening bell, which forced an immediate eight-count against the ropes. It was swiftly followed by an overwhelming technical knockout in the very second round. Wham, bam, and thank you, man.
Crucially, there was no repeat of the controversial criticism seen in some quarters during past bouts regarding any delay in halting the contest. In flew the white towel from the corner, and in jumped referee Steve Gray to wave off the punishment.
Naturally, there has been some minor nagging at the very edges of Dubois’s triumph. Whispers and suggestions have circulated that Wardley may have returned to the ring far too soon following the punishing beating he absorbed in the second half of their first meeting back in May. Yet, if five and a half months of recuperation is not deemed sufficient time to recover from a fight, exactly how long should a fighter wait? The immortal Joe Louis used to step between the ropes to defend his legacy once a month, for heaven’s sake.
Wardley, ever the honest and grounded sportsman, placed the blame squarely on his own shoulders. Having lived to fight another day, the valiant contender vows to regroup, learn from the experience, and launch a determined comeback campaign aimed at securing another world title opportunity.
Meanwhile, Dubois, who celebrated his 29th birthday just last month, is heading straight for the stratosphere as the undisputed champion of heavyweight boxing’s next generation.
Could he truly become the new monster of the prize-ring? It famously took The Greatest of All Time, Muhammad Ali, to stop the Liston beast firmly in his awesome tracks. Might Usyk find himself cast as the Muhammad Ali-in-waiting for this modern version of Dubois? Perhaps, perhaps not, given that the Ukrainian legend is now the elder statesman of the two. Even so, it would be a fascinating spectacle to find out.
The simple tombstone on Sonny Liston’s grave in Las Vegas describes the intimidating heavyweight icon with just two words: A MAN. Based on the monumental strides he has made inside and outside the squared circle, Frank Warren is entirely right about Daniel Dubois becoming precisely that.
