Heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk took out Daniel Dubois in nine rounds on Saturday night, but not without a hint of controversy in Wroclaw, Poland.
Usyk defended his WBA, IBF, and WBO titles before a raucous crowd of baying Ukrainians, stopping the brave Briton late on, as predicted.
However, the fifth round polarized audiences after a low shot from Dubois forced Usyk to take a few minutes to recover. On second viewing, the punch was on the belt line, which referee Luis Pabon assumedly told the fighters beforehand was not allowed.
The tactic, which Dubois used all night in an attempt to slow Usyk down, had successes, although the fifth round gave the British contingent cause to contest the loss.
Oleksandr Usyk dominates Daniel Dubois
According to CompuBox, it was Usyk who dominated with his jab.
After the first four rounds, Usyk had landed seven body punches while Dubois had landed one. In the fifth round, Dubois put Usyk down with a punch that was ruled a low blow. But, upon replay, it looked like a legal punch on the beltline.
Usyk took four minutes to recover. Dubois landed nine body punches from round five, while Usyk landed only three more. With Dubois targeting Usyk’s body, Usyk found openings to land his punches, especially his jab.
Usyk threw 53 more jabs than Dubois and landed 39 more. After knocking down Dubois at the end of the eighth round, Usyk didn’t allow Dubois to land a single punch in the ninth round before finishing him off.
After the clash, Usyk looked towards an undisputed clash with WBC ruler Tyson Fury as Dubois and his promoter put forward their case for a rematch that will never happen.
“I feel good,” stated Usyk, seemingly forgetting his “I am Feel” moniker. “Boxing is a tough sport, but I am great,” he added.
Asked about the low blow, a bemused Usyk responded: “I respect my opponent. It is not ballet; it is boxing. It is a king sport.
“I am ready tomorrow for Tyson Fury. Next fight, I am ready for Tyson Fury. Will Tyson Fury? I have no idea.”
Low blow controversy
Had the punch in the fifth round been ruled legal by Pabon, the dynamic of what had happened would undoubtedly have been altered despite Dubois’ handler Frank Warren stating his man was robbed of a victory.
Usyk would have immediately got up despite his pain, and there would have been some debate about what happened next. As it turned out, Usyk took all the time he needed to recover from the debated shot.
It didn’t really change the course of the fight, though, as Usyk was in control for the rest of the bout.
