By Jim Calfa: Oleksandr Usyk was humble & lowkey during today’s final press conference for the title defense of his three heavyweight belts against the young upstart Daniel Dubois this Saturday night on August 26th at Tarczyński Arena Wrocław in Wroclaw, Poland.
When Usyk offered Dubois (19-1, 18 KOs) a fist bump after their uneventful face-off, the emotionless Daniel initially ignored him but then reluctantly complied without turning around to look him in the face.
It was clear that Dubois didn’t wish to be friendly with Usyk before the fight, as that could make him less willing to go all out on Saturday night.
Most boxing fans believe IBF, WBA & WBO heavyweight champion Usyk (20-0, 13 KOs) will have too many skills for Dubois (19-1, 18 KOs), but there are a fair amount of people that believe Daniel will do the job.
The Usyk vs. Dubois event will be shown live on ESPN+ at 5:00 p.m. ET/2:00 p.m. PT.
Oleksandr Usyk: “My preparation is all good. We did a lot of work with swimming. We played football. We danced.”
“I’m grateful to my team, my family, my wife. I’m grateful to my country and to Ukrainian soldiers.”
The dancing & singing that Usyk has been doing in Dubois’ presence has annoyed him during these occasions. Dubois has looked stiff & ill at ease, not knowing how to respond.
Daniel Dubois: “I’m ready. I’ve suffered through training camp. I’ve done all of that. I’m ready now. I’ve prepared. I’ve left no stone unturned. I’m ready. I’m confident. I’m ready to go right now.”
“I think it was a bold move. That’s not to say that I think Dubois will win. I can make a case for Dubois winning it, but it was a bold move, no matter which way you look at it,” said Steve Bunce to Boxing King Media about Oleksandr Usyk choosing to defend against Daniel Dubois rather than playing it safe by fighting an easy opponent not to put his lucrative match against Tyson Fury at risk.
“Taking this fight was a bold move, a move he didn’t have to take. He could have found someone else. They [Usyk] were going to sell whatever it is, 40,000 in that arena [in Poland].
“They were going to sell those seats or tickets anyway, and the reason why they were going to sell them is because one in three people in this city is Ukrainian. They didn’t need Daniel Dubois in the opposite corner to sell this arena out.
“They didn’t need Daniel Dubois in the opposite corner to silence any critics.
“I’d like to see it happen,” said Bunce about a fight between Usyk & Tyson Fury for the undisputed heavyweight championship. “We’ve been waiting three years. “Does it have to happen? I don’t think it does. People aren’t stopping me, saying, ‘That fights got to happen.’
“Of course, I want to see that fight [Fury vs. Usyk] happen, but I think boxing survives without it happening, I’m sad to say,” said Bunce.
