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How Daniel Dubois' destiny to KO Anthony Joshua and rematch Oleksandr Usyk at Wembley was sealed after moving gyms

How Daniel Dubois' destiny to KO Anthony Joshua and rematch Oleksandr Usyk at Wembley was sealed after moving gyms

The Irish Sun16-07-2025
DANIEL DUBOIS' knockout of Anthony Joshua and rematch against Oleksandr Usyk is a case of destiny calling.
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Daniel Dubois with trainer Don Charles
Credit: YouTube/Sun Sport News
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The Wembley arch overlooks Dubois' gym
Credit: YouTube/Sun Sport News
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Now he rematches Oleksandr Usyk at Wembley
Credit: Getty
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Dubois also knocked out Anthony Joshua at Wembley
Credit: Getty
But together, they bounced back with big wins over previously unbeaten pair Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic in Saudi Arabia.
And after being elevated to IBF champion when Usyk vacated the belt - Dubois' crowning night came in September when he
The British heavyweight star now returns to England's 90,000-seat national stadium to rematch Usyk on Saturday night for the undisputed titles.
And - like he has for the past two years and four fights - he has prepared for the bout at head coach Charles' Pug gym in Borehamwood.
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Wembley is just ten miles away and the stadium's arch overlooks Dubois' gym from a distance - with destiny staring him right in the face.
Charles told SunSport
"I told him I had a surprise, a new place that I wanted to show him and his father.
"The minute they drove in - like you did today - I stood there and said, 'What can you see on the far side?'
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Usyk vs Dubois 2 - All the info
OLEKSANDR USYK and Daniel Dubois meet again in a blockbuster heavyweight unification fight at Wembley Stadium THIS SATURDAY!
Usyk won the first fight in August 2023 via a ninth round KO - but only after Dubois knocked him to the canvas with a body blow that was ruled a low blow.
Dubois, 27, has improved massively since that first meeting, reeling off stunning wins over Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Anthony Joshua.
Here's everything you need to know ahead of the big fight...
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USYK VS DUBOIS 2: Stream, TV channel and undercard info for blockbuster Wembley fight
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"They looked, they looked, they didn't know what they were looking for. I said, 'That's your destiny. The Wembley arch, that's your destiny calling. That's your destiny beckoning.'"
Dubois linked up with Charles after leaving Shane McGuigan but had just 14 weeks with his new coach before fighting Usyk.
In camp with Daniel Dubois ahead of Oleksandr Usyk bout
A low-blow in round five - which Dubois argued was legal -
Usyk, 38, later went on to become undisputed champion by beating Tyson Fury, 36, before dropping the IBF belt to take the rematch which he also won.
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Dubois, 27, meanwhile cemented himself as a true champion by flattening Joshua, 35, with a right hand in round five of their Wembley war.
And Charles says the boxer he took to Wroclaw is unrecognisable from the man that stands in front of him today.
He said: "We tried to cram everything to fight a genius of a fighter in the name of Usyk who since then has become undisputed.
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This is the controversial low-blow from 2023
Credit: TNT Sport
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Usyk went on to stop Dubois in round nine
Credit: RICHARD PELHAM
"So we had 14 weeks to cram everything because when you fight a southpaw there are rules that you must obey when you're in front of a southpaw.
"Imagine trying to cram that into a new fighter, the working relationship, the trust wouldn't be there irrespective of whether it's Daniel Dubois or whoever else.
"The trust and the working relationship between a fighter and a trainer takes time to develop. Now it's been 24 months, there's a lot of development in all different areas.
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"Daniel's two years older, two years wiser, all the ethos of boxing of the boxing that we teach here in this Pug gym, he understands the ethos we teach.
"And, the trust has developed, why? For many reasons; the numbers of fights that he has been with us, they're all wins with the exception of the Usyk fight.
"And the way he's beat his personnels, two unbeaten fighters and one was a double world champion. The way he disposed of them, remarkable."
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Dubois is in great shape ahead of the Usyk rematch
Credit: YouTube/Sun Sport News
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Dubois sinks a body shot into Charles' rips
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The pair have been training for two years now
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