‘Unstoppable' Daniel Dubois says he's ready to cause chaos and beat Oleksandr Usyk
Daniel Dubois can become Britain's first undisputed champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999.
– Daniel Dubois said he felt unstoppable and ready to cause chaos when he fights unbeaten Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk for the undisputed heavyweight world title at Wembley Stadium on July 19.
Dubois, 27, is the International Boxing Federation (IBF) champion while Usyk, 38, holds the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Council (WBC) and World Boxing Organisation (WBO) belts.
The rematch in London came after the Londoner lost by a controversial ninth-round knockout in Wroclaw, Poland, in 2023 after Usyk was given time to recover from what the referee ruled was a low blow in the fifth round.
Dubois can become Britain's first undisputed champion since Lennox Lewis in 1999, while Usyk is bidding to be a four-belt undisputed heavyweight champion for the second time after relinquishing the IBF title in 2024.
'I've resurrected myself, resurrected my career and now we're on a roll,' Dubois told the BBC.
'Unstoppable, I feel like I can't be beat right now. I'm in the prime of my life and I'm going to go through whatever I have to do. We're here now, no more excuses.
'I've got to beat him this time and I am going to win. I am going to cause chaos, knockouts, by any means necessary... I am ready. Man, I'm 100 per cent ready.
Top stories
Swipe. Select. Stay informed.
World Trump diagnosed with vein condition causing leg swelling: White House
World Trump was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency. What is it?
Singapore 5 foreigners charged over scheme to deliberately get arrested in S'pore to sell sex drugs here
Asia Appointment of Malaysia's new chief justice eases controversy over vacant top judge seats for now
Singapore Driverless bus in Sentosa gets green light to run without safety officer in first for S'pore
Singapore SPCA appoints Walter Leong as new executive director
World US strikes destroyed only one of three Iranian nuclear sites, says new report
Business Granddaughter of late Indonesian tycoon pays $25 million for Singapore bungalow
'As soon as the bell rings, my whole approach is just to seek and destroy, bring chaos and get the victory, seize the moment,' he added.
Promoter Frank Warren, who represents Dubois, has said Usyk would find the Briton a very different opponent to the one he beat before.
'Last time they fought Daniel the boy. This time they're fighting Daniel the man and that's the difference and he'll find that out on Saturday,' he told reporters on July 15.
'He (Usyk) is the best heavyweight of his generation, but everybody's the best until they get beaten and I think it's his time now.'
Oleksandr Usyk holds the WBA, WBC and WBO belts.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Also fighting on July 19 is Manny Pacquiao.
The former world champion is embracing his underdog status as he gets ready to turn back the clock when he steps out of retirement to face WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
The 46-year-old Filipino feels rejuvenated after four years away from the ring and said he was returning for another opportunity to make history.
'I'm enjoying training camp as much as I did when I was 26 or 29 years old. The motivation to train hard and the discipline are the same,' Pacquiao said at a press conference on July 16.
'I mean, it's because I've been away from boxing why I'm still interested and passionate about fighting.'
The veteran fighter retired from boxing in 2021. He had a stint in the Philippine Senate from 2016 to 2022 and an unsuccessful 2022 presidential bid.
His remarkable record includes titles in eight weight divisions, a first in boxing history, and he was the oldest welterweight world champion at age 40 in 2019.
'I cannot imagine that I am still fighting here in the Grand arena after 24 years. It's a blessing, a favour from God, and I'm so thankful to be here, still fighting and putting on a good show for the fans,' he said.
The Filipino is also enjoying being the underdog, adding: 'In so many of my fights, I was the underdog and I surprised them... Manny always brings surprises.'
Standing in his path is Barrios, a Mexican-American with 29 wins (18 by knockout) and two defeats in 32 bouts, who remains confident despite facing a boxing great.
'You know, Manny is a very likeable person. I can't think of anything bad to say about him other than, you know, he's facing me for my title,' Barrios said.
'At the end of the day, he's just another man in there. He's another opponent trying to take my title, regardless of everything he's accomplished and given to the sport,' the 30-year-old added.
REUTERS
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Straits Times
Porsche takes Formula E team and manufacturer titles
Find out what's new on ST website and app. Porsche won the team and manufacturer titles as the all-electric Formula E championship wrapped up its season in London on Sunday. Nissan's Oliver Rowland had already won the drivers' crown with two races to spare. The Briton retired from Sunday's race after a crash. New Zealand's Nick Cassidy won both races at the ExCel centre on Saturday and Sunday as he said farewell to Jaguar with second place overall in the championship. Sunday's victory was a fifth in six races for Jaguar. Cassidy beat Mahindra's Nyck de Vries by 13.5 seconds with Sebastien Buemi third for Envision after Jaguar's Mitch Evans finished second on the road but was then handed a five second penalty and dropped to fifth. The race was the last for Jaguar team principal James Barclay, who is moving to head McLaren's world endurance hypercar team, and also for the McLaren Formula E team. REUTERS
Straits Times
10 hours ago
- Straits Times
Hamilton and Verstappen question race delay as others back FIA
Formula One F1 - Belgian Grand Prix - Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium - July 27, 2025 Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton after the start of the race was delayed due to weather REUTERS/Yves Herman/Pool SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium - Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen questioned race control's handling of the rain-delayed Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday as rival drivers commended Formula One's governing body for putting safety first. The race at Spa-Francorchamps was delayed for an hour and 20 minutes as officials waited for rain to stop and conditions to dry out. The safety car then led the field for four laps before a rolling start. "I think we could have started way sooner, that's not ideal," Red Bull's four times world champion Verstappen told reporters, adding that in the end there had been very little racing in the wet. Hamilton, who went from the pit lane to seventh, said he did not think the rolling start was necessary. "I don't really know why they did that one, because it had dried up quite a lot and the spray wasn't that bad," added the Briton. The high-speed Spa circuit is the longest lap on the calendar and weather conditions can be treacherous. It also has a tragic past. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Sewage shaft failure linked to sinkhole; PUB calling safety time-out on similar works islandwide Singapore Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole did not happen overnight: Experts Singapore Workers used nylon rope to rescue driver of car that fell into Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole Asia Singapore-only car washes will get business licences revoked, says Johor govt World Food airdropped into Gaza as Israel opens aid routes Sport Arsenal beat Newcastle in five-goal thriller to bring Singapore Festival of Football to a close Singapore Benchmark barrier: Six of her homeschooled kids had to retake the PSLE Asia S'porean trainee doctor in Melbourne arrested for allegedly filming colleagues in toilets since 2021 French Formula Two driver Anthoine Hubert died in a crash at the 2019 Belgian Grand Prix at the exit of Raidillon, at the top of the famed Eau Rouge, while Dutch teenager Dilano van't Hoff died in a junior series crash in 2023. The list is much longer when the sport's distant past is considered. "I think the past few years, particularly here, we've given the FIA feedback that we would much rather be on the safe side than risk anything," said McLaren's race winner and championship leader Oscar Piastri. "I think that's what we did today. If you were to be picky, maybe we could have done one less formation lap. But in the grand scheme of things, if that's one lap too early, is it worth it? No." Ferrari's third-placed finisher Charles Leclerc, whose family friend Jules Bianchi suffered fatal injuries in a crash at the rain-hit 2014 Japanese Grand Prix, agreed. "On a track like this with what happened historically, I think you cannot forget about it. For that reason, I'd rather be safe than too early," he said. "Maybe it was a little bit on the late side, but I wouldn't have changed anything." Williams' Carlos Sainz, who started near the back and would have suffered in the spray, supported race control. "In a normal track, yes, I think we could have started maybe 5-10 minutes earlier. In Spa-Francorchamps and the history of this track, it's better safe than sorry," said the Spaniard. REUTERS
Straits Times
13 hours ago
- Straits Times
Oscar Piastri beats Lando Norris in rain-hit Belgian Grand Prix
– Championship leader Oscar Piastri grabbed an early lead and extended his title advantage on July 28 when he drove to a perfectly-controlled triumph ahead of McLaren teammate and title rival Lando Norris at a rain-delayed Belgian Grand Prix. The 24-year-old Australian managed his tyres expertly to remain out of reach in the closing laps as the Briton, 25, who had started on pole, closed in on a harder-wearing compound, finishing 3.415 seconds clear as McLaren reeled off their sixth one-two in a dominant season. It was Piastri's first win at the classic Spa-Francorchamps circuit, his sixth this season and the eighth of his career, extending his lead in the drivers' championship to 16 points after 13 of this season's 24 races. For McLaren, it was a 10th win of 2025. Charles Leclerc came a solid third for Ferrari ahead of four-time champion Max Verstappen of Red Bull, under the race leadership of new team boss Laurent Mekies for the first time, and Mercedes George Russell. Alex Albon clung on to finish sixth for Williams ahead of chasing seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari, who started from the pit lane, and Racing Bulls' rookie Liam Lawson. Gabriel Botoleto was ninth for Sauber, ahead of Pierre Gasly of Alpine. 'That was lively!' said the cool Piastri, who swept past Norris on lap one. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Sewage shaft failure linked to sinkhole; PUB calling safety time-out on similar works islandwide Singapore Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole did not happen overnight: Experts Singapore Workers used nylon rope to rescue driver of car that fell into Tanjong Katong Road sinkhole Asia Singapore-only car washes will get business licences revoked, says Johor govt World Food airdropped into Gaza as Israel opens aid routes Sport Arsenal beat Newcastle in five-goal thriller to bring Singapore Festival of Football to a close Singapore Benchmark barrier: Six of her homeschooled kids had to retake the PSLE Asia S'porean trainee doctor in Melbourne arrested for allegedly filming colleagues in toilets since 2021 'Very lively. I knew that lap one was probably my best chance of winning the race. I lifted a little as I went through Eau Rouge and then it was enough. 'The rest of the race we managed really well. Maybe the medium wasn't the best in the last five-six laps, but we had it almost under control! I was disappointed after yesterday, but it turns out that starting second was not too bad.' Norris conceded he could not have won. 'Oscar just did a good job – there's nothing much more to say. He was committed a bit more in Eau Rouge and that was it. Oscar deserved it today.' Leclerc added: 'Max was behind me all race within two seconds, so it's never easy. I knew the first part was the trickiest and I'm pretty happy we managed to keep that third place.' The race began, after an 80-minute delay due to heavy rain, with the entire field on intermediates to run for four laps behind a safety car, clearing standing water. Four drivers started from the pitlane – Carlos Sainz, Fernando Alonso, Kimi Antonelli and Lewis Hamilton – having made changes to their power units or set-up overnight. They began at the rear of the field ahead of the rolling start at the start of lap five. As the lights went green, Norris powered away to lead through La Source, but he was unable to resist when Piastri sneaked out of his slipstream to take the lead going into Les Combes chicane. 'Why do I have no pack?' asked Norris, realising he lacked electric power. 'We used a lot on the safety car restart,' McLaren responded. On lap 12, Hamilton was the first in for medium slick tyres, rejoining 18th, followed by Piastri, Leclerc, Verstappen, Russell and more. Norris stayed out one lap longer for hards, hoping to profit if his rival's rubber degraded in the closing laps. He was the only one. By lap 15, everyone else had switched to mediums and it was Piastri on top ahead of Norris by 9.3 with Leclerc third leading Verstappen, Russell, Albon and in flying form, Hamilton. As Norris closed in, Piastri said his tyres were already degrading. 'I think it will be tough to get to the end,' he told race engineer Tom Stallard, raising the prospect of a dramatic finale. On lap 26, Norris slid wide at Puhon, falling back to nine seconds adrift before remounting his charge. It was a process of marginal gains as Piastri managed his tyres. Norris was close but Piastri's craft and calm prevailed. AFP
