By Charles Brun: Joe Joyce (10-0, 9 KOs) knows what kind of danger Daniel Dubois (14-0, 13 KOs) presents for him early on in their clash on April 11 on BT Sport Box Office pay-per-view at the O2 Arena in London, UK.
Joyce claims he’ll be ready to take some big licks early on by the big hitting Dubois in order return those licks later in the fight, and get him out of there. He expects to KO the 22-year-old Dubois, and leave him lumped up afterwards, wondering what happened.
Joyce with experience on his side
Boxing fans are pretty much split down the middle at 50-50 in which of the two fighters they see winning. While a lot of people think the younger lion Dubois will have too much youth and power for Joyce, many others see him being exposed as a product of hype.
The woeful opposition that the 6’5″ Dubois has been put in with since he turned professional makes it difficult to calculate his chances against the more experienced 2016 Olympic silver medalist Joyce.
Dubois is dangerous claims Joyce
“It’s going to be a massive fight. He’s dangerous, and he’s got dynamite in his fists,” said Joyce to iFL TV on his opponent Dubois. “It’s a 50-50 fight, and it’s going to be massive. I’m really looking forward to it as well. It’s been awhile. I haven’t fought since July.
“It’s good to be out there again, and it’s going to be a big audience in front of the O2 crowd,” said Joyce. “It’s a shame that [Marco] Huck fight fell through for the European, but this fight right here is a massive fight. I think it’s a good fight, and it’ a good time to do it. Why not do it now?
“It’s going to be massive for the winner,” said Joyce. “I.e. me. For me to use when he [Dubois] starts talking,” said Joyce when asked if he needs to bring his sleeping bag. “Yeah, it was going to be for the European title, so it would be a rematch,” said Joyce when asked about what happened with the Filip Hrgovic fight.
“It was a brilliant first fight when I was in WSB. Hrgovic is a really good fighter. I rate him, and it would have been a really tough fight as well. It can potentially still happen. I’m going to deal with Dubois first, and we’ll see,” said Joyce.
Dubois tends to bum rush his opponents early in his fights to try and bang them out right away. Without question, Dubois’ job has been made easier due to him being matched against lower level 2nd tier fighters since he turned pro.
You can argue the best guy that Dubois has faced during his three-year pro career is 40-year-old Kevin ‘Kingpin’ Johnson (34-16-1, 16 KOs), who he was forced to labor to beat by a 10 round decision in 2018.
Joyce predicts Dubois will try and KO him early
“I’m going to be moving onto some really big fights this year,” said Joyce. “I’m really excited when I get the win, because it’ll be such a good feeling as well,” said Joyce about his plans for beating Dubois. “Yeah, that’s probably pretty accurate. He’s going to come in and try and bomb me out in the first rounds.
“I’m going to have to take a few licks, but I’m going to give them back later on,” said Joyce. “He’s going to wake up with lumps all over him,” said Joyce. “Because I’m a bit ahead of him; my opponents had winning records, so I’m looking to get to a world title. I’m 34, and I’m close to that level.
“Now the fight makes sense.,” Joyce said. “He’s got a rank #3 with the WBO, and he’s got a British title. I’d love to win that belt. I gave him the Commonwealth title. I can win that back as well. What’s the other one? WBC Silver? So I can add that to my collection. I’ve got the WBA Gold. It’s collecting belts, isn’t it?” said Joyce.
The only way Dubois fights is for him to go after his opponents straightaway to try and bang them out. In some ways, the lower level opposition that Dubois has been facing mirrors that of Anthony Joshua early in his career.
Joshua developed a lot of bad habits of trying to stomp his opponents immediately due to the mediocre fighters his promoter Eddie Hearn put him in with. That eventually bit Joshua in the backside when he attempted to bum rush Andy Ruiz Jr. without thinking last year in June, and was stopped in the 7th round.
Joe Joyce looking forward to beating Dubois on PPV
“It’s a step forward, isn’t it?” said Joyce on his fight with Dubois.“I’m going to be a pay-per-view fighter,” said Joyce about his fight with Dubois being on BT Sport Box Office PPV. “It’s going to be very nice, and very good. Beat Dubois, fight for a world title, win the world title, fight for another world title, win all the belts. I think Daniel Dubois did his best this morning actually. I think I did alright as well,” said Joyce.
This might be the ONLY time that Joyce ever fights on pay-per-view if he gets beaten by Dubois. It could be the beginning of something new for Joyce as a pay-per-view fighter, but it also could be the beginning of the end if he loses to Dubois. It would be hard for Joyce to come back from a knockout loss to Dubois, and he may never be able to claw his way back.