Joe Joyce, who is currently the only man to defeat Daniel Dubois, believes his former foe did the right thing by slimming down for Saturday’s fight with WBO, IBF, IBO, WBA world champion Oleksandr Usyk.
On Friday, Dubois stepped on the scale at 233.2-pounds, while Usyk came in at 220.9-pounds.
It was Dubois’ lightest weight since 2017, when he weighed 233 for only his fourth pro fight.
“He’s probably going to be more agile,” Joyce told Talk Sport. “Because if he’s a bit slow and plodding then he’s not going to be able to hit Usyk.
“So, I guess that is a good move to be lighter, faster and more agile. Especially if he can do more rounds as well, if he can do the twelve rounds comfortably being lighter.”
In 2020, Joyce was behind on the cards when he rallied to stop Dubois in the tenth round.
Since suffering that loss, Dubois has bounced back by winning four fights in a row – including a knockout of Trevor Bryan to capture the WBA’s “regular” title.
Joyce, who lost a decision to Usyk in the amateurs, believes the unbeaten champion will prevail in the contest
Dubois has legitimate power, which gives him a puncher’s chance in the fight, but Joyce expects Usyk’s defensive abilities to nullify Dubois’ chances to land anything of note.
“He’s a very heavy hitter, but if you can’t hit Usyk then how are you going to knock him out,” Joyce said.
“I’ve noticed that Usyk can take a shot as well and he throws lots of punches, so it’s difficult. It’s tough test, but good luck to Dubois.”
Joyce is preparing for his upcoming rematch with Zhilei Zhang. A victory would make Joyce the WBO’s mandatory challenger to the Usyk-Dubois winner.