Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois have ticked the final box before their unified heavyweight world title fight in Wroclaw, Poland this weekend.
Dubois will be the fourth Brit to attempt to beat Usyk, with Tony Bellew, Derek Chisora and Anthony Joshua previously failing.
Joshua had two attempts, losing his WBA, IBF and WBO titles in the process. It’s those belts that Usyk defends in Poland, with the 25-year-old hard-hitting Dubois looking to spoil his dreams of becoming two-time undisputed.
The fighters took to the scales one day out from the event, posting numbers as follows:
Usyk – 220.9lbs
💪 @usykaa looks in incredible shape! ⚖️
220.9 lbs for Oleksandr Usyk 🥊
Watch #UsykDubois LIVE on TNT Sports Box Office pic.twitter.com/43Y80l59yO
— Boxing on TNT Sports (@boxingontnt) August 25, 2023
Dubois – 233.2lbs
233.2lbs of pure muscle for @dynamitedubois 💪⚖️
Watch #UsykDubois LIVE on TNT Sports Box Office pic.twitter.com/fl8p42Z9Dc
— Boxing on TNT Sports (@boxingontnt) August 25, 2023
The difference between the fighters is less than a stone.
Dubois has hovered around 240lbs since 2017, and hasn’t seen such a low number on the scales since July of that year in a ten-rounder with Mauricio Barragan. It was his fourth pro fight, and he has been lighter just once in his 20-fight career.
For his only previous step up to world level – a stoppage loss to Joe Joyce in 2020 – he was just over 244.
Usyk has steadily crept up his weight since joining the heavyweight ranks. For his maiden fight against Chazz Witherspoon, he was 215. He followed that up with 217 against Chisora, and then 221 for both ‘AJ’ fights.
He has transitioned from cruiser to heavy well, keeping that speed and movement that has bamboozled 19 opponents so far.
It’s this many believe Dubois may struggle to keep up with, but perhaps a slightly lighter frame makes it a less mountainous task.
Many feel the way to shock Usyk and cause the upset is to attempt to walk him down and hit him wherever he can – ‘big man’ him as they say in the gyms.
If fans read into the challenger’s weight at all, movement and cardio may be more of a focus in the game-plan.