TRAINER Don Charles has given Daniel Dubois four weeks’ rest until his next training camp, with a rematch against Oleksandr Usyk representing their preferred option.
The IBF world heavyweight champion was forced to withdraw from his clash against Joseph Parker – originally scheduled for last Saturday – after suffering an illness during fight week.
Instead, fearsome contender Martin Bakole stepped in on just two days’ notice, allowing Parker to capitalise on his opponent’s less than ideal preparation with an emphatic second-round finish.
Dubois, 22-2 (21 KOs), meanwhile, was left recovering from his swollen glands, an ongoing illness that has impacted his training on multiple occasions.
Nevertheless, his head coach, Charles, was just as shocked as everyone else when the typically robust 27-year-old was suddenly taken ill.
“We arrived in [Riyadh, Saudi Arabia] on the Friday [February 14]. On the Saturday, we had a training session and he was razor sharp,” Charles told Boxing News.
“Then over the coming days, we were training every evening – just 45-minute sessions to keep him sharp.
“On the Thursday, his dad called me saying that Daniel wasn’t feeling very well. So you can’t let him fight, and defend his title, if he’s not well. We’re not macho people; we’re sensible people.”
By this point, Dubois had been examined by a Riyadh Season doctor, who gave him prescriptions, before Dr Neil Scott – the chief medical advisor at the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBC) – took a urine sample and ultimately determined that he had swollen glands.
“That’s not the first time this has happened,” Charles added. “[Dubois had a dry throat] four weeks prior to the Usyk fight [in 2023], so we were able to lay him off for four days before resuming training.
“It also happened before the [Filip] Hrgovic fight [last year]. Again, we had time to take him off training for a few days.
“Had this happened a week prior to the [Parker] fight, then perhaps we would have looked at [keeping the fight on] and giving him a few days to get the illness out of his system.
“But his glands were swollen, he was feeling a bit feverish, and the doctors said that, although we were in an air conditioned room, he was clammy.
“Fans must remember it [would have been] a career-highest payday [against Parker], and Daniel turned that down because he was genuinely ill.
“I’ve got to find out whether he needs to get his tonsils [removed].”
Following Dubois’ withdrawal, heavyweight king Usyk, 23-0 (14 KOs), expressed his interest in a potential rematch with the Brit, firmly setting his sights on the undisputed crown.
The Ukrainian emerged from their first encounter with a ninth-round stoppage victory, though Dubois still insists that his fifth-round low blow was, in fact, a legal body shot.
In any case, ‘Dynamite’ has now been given an appropriate amount of time to recover before entering his next outing.
“[The Usyk rematch is] the only logical fight to make,” Charles said. “I’ve given [Dubois] three weeks off because [there’s a planned trip to Brazil with his family].
“Daniel never puts on more than two kilos – he’s a very disciplined kid – and we’ve had back-to-back camps for the last 18 months.
“We’d probably be looking to start camp around four weeks from now, and then fight potentially in May or June.”
