Daniel Dubois pulled off a shock stoppage against Anthony Joshua from retaining the IBF title

At one point, not too long ago, some called Daniel Dubois a “quitter.” They questioned his heart, his integrity, and his core, whether he was truly a competitive fighter at the highest level.

The important thing is that he never wondered. Dubois fought against discrimination. He revived his career with victories over Jarrell Miller (TKO 10) and Filip Hrgovic (TKO 8). His victory over Hrgovic gave him the interim IBF title, which has since been promoted to the “full” title.

Still, he and Anthony Joshua needed each other. They were two injured boxing figures tied together—they each lost to undefeated Ring and world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk. Both of them had to regain their status in the heavyweight division, both of them needed to be rescued in a strange way against each other.

Dubois got it on Saturday night in a stunning fifth-round knockout of Joshua as part of the Riyadh Season: Wembley Edition before a record 96,000 crowd at Wembley Stadium, London, England, retained the IBF heavyweight title Usyk vacated for a December rematch with Tyson Fury.

The Ring’s No. 6 heavyweight, 27-year-old Dubois (22-2, 21 knockouts) knocked out 34-year-old Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) in the first, third, fourth and fifth rounds. . The finish officially came at :59 of the fifth, after Dubois caught Joshua in the jaw with a counter right.

“I only have a few things to say, ‘You’re not happy!'” Dubois shouted to the enthusiastic crowd. “It’s been a long journey. Thank you for being in this position. I am a gladiator, and a warrior who fights to the bitter end. In hindsight, working with my father and a strong team helped me get through this. I have been on a roller coaster ride and this is my story of redemption. “

Dubois connected on 91 of 230 punches (46%) and 27 uppercuts, to Joshua’s 60 of 139 (48%), and 16 uppercuts.

“Credit to (Dubois) and his team,” Joshua said. “We rolled the dice to win and we didn’t win. You know I’m angry. You know I want to kick in the ring. We keep rolling the dice. I had a sharp opponent, a fast opponent, but a lot of mistakes in my end. This is a game, as angry as I am.”

Daniel Dubois stops Anthony Joshua in the first round. From there, Joshua never stood a chance against Dubois. (Photo by Mark Robinson Matchroom Boxing).

In the beginning, Dubois attacked Joshua in the first minute. Dubois, dressed in black, entered the ring well dressed, looking very relaxed. In contrast, Joshua, who has white hair, looked strong during his walk in the ring.

Dubois, who weighs 248.6 pounds, put Joshua down with a big, overhand right to the chin in the final five seconds of the first. That happened after Joshua missed Dubois’ right.

Not wanting to lose the fight, Dubois went head-to-head with Joshua at the start of the second round. Dubois looked like he had Joshua in trouble and, although halfway through the round, Joshua seemed to settle down. Joshua survived the round, despite being hit in the back of the head by a right hand from Dubois.

Early in the third, Dubois surprised Joshua with a quick combination. He was supporting Joshua and still looking to get his legs under him. In the final minute of the round, Dubois sent Joshua down for the second time. Dubois hit Joshua with a left to the chin, and referee Marcus McDonnell did a poor job of not seeing Joshua’s gloves touch the canvas.

Dubois took Joshua down—legally—early in the fourth. Maybe it was a makeup call from the previous round, because it looked more like a slip than a knockdown caused by a hit.