Anthony Joshua will bid to become the fifth three-time world champion in the history of the heavyweight division when he steps through the ropes for a domestic dust-up with Daniel Dubois on Saturday night. With the eyes of the boxing universe cast towards the record-breaking night at Wembley Stadium, British fan-favourite Carl Froch offered his prediction.
Both Joshua and Dubois are arguably looking better than ever and both go into the contest in red hot, each registering back-to-back eye-catching stoppage victories and flourishing under their respective new trainers – Ben Davison and Don Charles.
Yet, despite the more experienced Joshua understandably entering the bout as the favourite, it is Dubois who is in possession of the IBF heavyweight crown, after he was upgraded from interim title-holder shortly after he sprung an upset win over Filip Hrgovic back in June.
Speaking with Coin Poker, four-time super-middleweight champion Froch outlined his belief that Joshua’s previous encounters on the big stage will serve him well and feared that Dubois could melt under the pressure of the near 100,000 capacity crowd.
“If I was going to have a chunky bet on it, I’d bet on AJ to win because that’s the safe bet. But if I was getting good odds, I’d say Dubois by KO. He’s got that bit between his teeth. He’s on the crest of this wave. He’s had two good wins. Hopefully he doesn’t drive himself mad and put too much pressure on himself. Prediction wise, you can’t say that AJ’s got the chin built to take a punch off Dubois, because Dubois can bang.
“At the minute I can’t separate them, but the smart money is on Anthony Joshua to beat him because Dubois is quite easy to hit. He gets hit with big shots. I think Dubois is going to feel the pressure when the spotlights hit him.”
Whilst Joshua-Dubois is a salivating affair, there are an additional five all-British match-up’s on the remainder of the bill and ‘The Cobra’ went on to declare Hamzah Sheeraz as Britain’s best prospect, ahead of the 25-year-old’s middleweight showdown against European champion Tyler Denny on the same night.
“Hamzah Sheeraz is probably one of the best, if not the best prospect now coming out of Britain. That’s how highly I rate him. Ben Whittaker’s a good fighter. He’s expected to do great things, but he’s still got a lot to show me in a professional boxing ring against a fighter that’s coming to win. Hamzah Sheeraz has come the raw way. If I had to say who was more nailed on to become a world champion, Hamza Sheeraz is a fantastic talent and he’s one to watch in the future.
Joshua-Dubois takes place on Saturday September 21st at Wembley Stadium, London, as Joshua becomes the first fighter to headline the national stadium on three occasions and does so atop of blockbuster card.
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