Former Ring heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis will be an interested observer when his compatriots Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois clash at Wembley Arena, London on Saturday.
Lewis, who has achieved everything possible in boxing and has had his share of big domestic clashes, believes such an event, which could see a crowd of more than 90,000, will be something to remember.
“It’s unbelievable, it’s definitely comparable to a world title fight,” Lewis told The Ring. “You’ve got two British fighters fighting so it’s epic. Every time there’s (a big all-British fight) it’s always epic. It’s as epic as me and Frank Bruno, me and Gary Mason.”
The 59-year-old, who recently turned 59, feels that while Joshua has long been on the top table of world boxing, Dubois now wants to claim his position.
“Dubois was the guy that nobody looked at for a while and he wants his glory,” Lewis said. “I think he looks at Anthony as the golden boy in the sense that everyone is upset about him, he has the fans, the big promoter and he has the spotlight because that’s how it was, but now it’s his time. He sat back on the wave and he has an opportunity, now let’s see if he can do it.”
Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois square off ahead of their IBF heavyweight title fight at Wembley Stadium on Saturday night – Photo by Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing
Lewis feels AJ has one definite advantage in meeting two dynamic power punchers who both achieve knockout ratios close to or higher than 90 percent.
“His advantage is his experience,” Lewis said. “The fact that he’s been against Oleksandr Usyk twice, he’s boxed in America, big stadium events and has high-profile trainers.”
However, Lewis is not writing off Dubois, who has grown significantly with recent wins over Jarrell Miller (TKO 10) and Filip Hrgovic (TKO 8), the latter of which earned him the interim IBF title which has since been upgraded to a full title. .
“Don’t cut out the guy who’s been waiting a while. Just because he was quiet doesn’t mean he’s not deadly,” countered Lewis. “He was able to put Usyk on the ground (Editor’s note: The aforementioned knockdown was not achieved as such in that fight), which is something not many people can do.
“The hunger, no one knows his hunger as well as he does. Everyone sees him sitting back and going through the motions. I think a big tell was his last fight against (Filip Hrgovic) and the one before that against Jarrell Miller. I think that was a turning point for him when he got rid of Miller. He was in a fight, fighting a guy who was pretty rugged and he kind of decided that, ‘You can’t stay with me.’ And he stepped on the gas a little bit and stopped him, and that’s what he was supposed to do. There was no way Miller was supposed to go the distance with him. I said that before the fight and he proved me right.”
With so much on the line, Lewis says the deciding factor can be determination.
“It’s just heart, who has the guts to really go for it,” he said. “Both have the talent to do it, they have the power. Now, who’s going to stand up and say it’s mine?”
Ultimately, who how sees things play out?
“I think it could go either way because both of them have a good shot,” he said before making a blunt prediction. “Anthony has the advantage. Daniel was there in the background, he wants it, he dreams about it all his life. If he goes for it, it will come out by itself. As far as experience (Dubois) has gained a lot of experience in his last few fights.
“I think at the moment it points to Joshua, but it doesn’t point very much to him. Daniel has done the work, this is his opportunity, it is up to him to step forward. Anything can happen in this.
“I watch the Joe Joyce fight, and Joyce caught him with jabs. I believe Joshua has a much better jab than Joyce. This is what will be Daniel’s weakness. If he doesn’t get his streak going, if he allows AJ to get his streak going first, that’s the problem.
He then offered a clear prediction.
“Joshua through downtime. I don’t think it’s going to be an early fight, I think it’s probably going to be later rounds. Daniel is not going to lie down.”
Questions and/or comments can be sent to Anson at (email protected).
