With just over 24 hours to go until Filip Hrgovic and Daniel Dubois meet, the IBF have finally made a major decision regarding their heavyweight title and whether it will be on the line in the bout.
As fight night approaches, tempers are rising and excitement is boiling over into aggression from both promoters and fighters alike, as Frank Warren and Eddie Hearn go head-to-head and pit five of their superstars up against five of their rivals, both men keen to get one over their old enemy.
Dubois is no different, as Filip Hrgovic’s continuous provoking continued at the press conference on Thursday, after the Croatian publicized their one-sided sparring session.
Dubois and Hrgovic were expected to meet for the IBF world title, under the assumption that the governing body would strip Oleksandr Usyk of the belt for failing to face his mandatory challenger.
However, the IBF have finally made their decision, issuing a letter notifying all parties involved that it will sanction the bout for the interim IBF heavyweight title, meaning that Usyk keeps hold of the full title and remains undisputed champion for now.
If Usyk is later stripped, the interim champion may then be upgraded to full champion, where a fight between the Hrgovic vs. Dubois winner and Anthony Joshua could take place for the belt at Wembley Stadium in September.
Nevertheless, the heavyweight clash is deemed by many as a 50/50 affair, but Hrgovic has maintained extreme confidence in the bout, due to his success in a previous sparring session that led to the cancellation of Dubois’ southern area title fight with DL Jones in 2018, comments which have angered both Dubois and his team.
During the Queensberry versus Matchroom; five versus five press conference, ‘El Animal’ exuded confidence once again, responding to Dubois’ recognition of him as a great fighter but giving credit to the Briton’s name rather than his skills, adding that he will take the 26-year-old to school o Saturday night.
DD: “I can’t take no more easy steps, no more bums, this is the level that I need to be at and I am ready for it.
“We have a bit of history of sparring and whatever, but that was seven years ago. I am here for the fight on Saturday and I am going to knock him out on Saturday.”
FH: “I feel great. I am glad that he called me out and that he wants to fight me. I have been calling for top heavyweights and big names for a few years and this is a really good fight for me. He is a good name, he is a good boxer and I can’t wait for Saturday.
“I have much more experience, I had a long amateur career and I have gone through more than him. So, I think that even though he has more professional fights, I have more experience and I will take him to school.”
Deontay Wilder vs. Zhilei Zhang will headline the bill on Saturday night, live on DAZN from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Also on the card will be a WBA featherweight title showdown between Ray Ford and Nick Ball, and a WBA light-heavyweight title contest involving Dmitry Bivol and Malik Zinad.
Although, it is arguable that a potential opportunity to fight Anthony Joshua for a vacant heavyweight world title is the biggest prize on offer.
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