When Billy Joe Saunders’ bid to dethrone P4P king ‘Canelo’ Alvarez ended in defeat, the manner of his loss threw Daniel Dubois right back into the spotlight.
Saunders was pulled out by his corner before Round 9 after reportedly sustaining multiple fractures to his right eye socket – courtesy of a brutal uppercut from Alvarez. A similar injury to the one which led to Dubois taking a knee and losing to Joe Joyce in November 2020.
The immediate aftermath saw fight fans on social media in particular referencing comments made by Saunders in the aftermath of that Dubois loss. He had been critical of Dubois’ actions, and said he would never react in a similar way.
While Dubois gets why he is suddenly back in the spotlight, he says his own focus is very much on another matter – namely his eagerly-awaited ring return against Bogdan Dinu (20-2) on June 5 (live on BT Sport).
Dubois: let Saunders heal
‘Dynamite’ (15-1) is fully healed from the injury he suffered against Joyce and looking at only one thing – beating Dinu to take the WBA interim heavyweight title.
He said: “I understand why everyone has wanted to make comparisons between me and Billy, but it’s time to move on now.
“Billy has had his injury, people have said what they’ve had to say but now it’s time to let him rest, heal and be with his family.
“It’s important for me to move on too. I’ve got a fight on June 5th with Bogdan Dinu that I need to get ready for.”
There will be much focus on Dubois on June 5, with experts wanting to see how he will react from what was a shattering first defeat as a professional. He’s confident they will come away with a positive impression.
“Over six months of frustrations are ready to come out,” he said.
“You are going to see the best version of Daniel Dubois in that ring on June 5th. I will beat Bogdan Dinu up and knock him out.”
Dubois: Dinu no soft option
Dubois has absolutely not taken a tune-up fight here – he is going right back in at the deep end against Romanian star Dinu.
“Dinu is a decent test. He does some things very well. He has fast hands and can move. He’s ranked #2 (by the WBA) for a reason, and he’ll see this as a chance to get a title.
“I need to do what I do, show people why they called me ‘Dynamite’ in the first place. It’ll be a devastating performance, I promise you. A huge knockout to put myself back on the map.”
