By: Hans Themistode
Whether he’s preparing for a contest or simply hanging out, heavyweight prospect Daniel Dubois can always be found smiling. Yet, with his all-British showdown with fellow prospect Joe Joyce only a few days away, the 23-year-old Dubois is all business.
“I’m done playing games,” said Dubois to IFL TV during a recent interview. “I’m ready to cause him some serious pain.”
Joyce, a 2016 Olympic silver medalist, has taken the same approach for all of his fights whether it’s in the pro’s or the unpaid ranks, which is to come forward and dictate the pace from the opening bell. While Joyce (11-0, 10 KOs) has been relentless with the sort of pressure that he has placed on his opponents, Dubois won’t allow his 35-year-old opponent to push him back all night.
Instead, he intends on fighting fire with fire.
“I’m going to go out there and meet him. I’m going to need everything that I got in the arsenal. All the weapons have been sharpened so I need to go out there and use them all. It’s not just boxing but will power and whatever he hits me with, hit him back twice as hard.”
The trash talk between both has been on display from the moment their contest has been announced. In short, neither man has been fond of one another. While most have a difficult time picking a winner, Dubois (15-0, 14 KOs) is confident that not only will he stop Joyce in his tracks in impressive fashion, but also that a win over his fellow Brit will launch his career into a completely different stratosphere.
“It would be a massive win. Onwards and upwards to glory and to the big fights. It would be moving really to the big world title fights. This is the biggest fight of my career easily and I one hundred percent believe that I will be victorious and it will be a devastating finish.”
