Former featherweight world champion Barry McGuigan believes that Daniel Dubois has the potential to exploit a critical weakness in Anthony Joshua’s defense, making their potential upcoming fight highly intriguing.
Dubois, 26, is currently the frontrunner to face Joshua on September 21 at Wembley Stadium.
The Queensberry Promotions fighter recently secured a significant victory over Filip Hrgovic, earning the IBF interim title.
This win has positioned Dubois as a leading candidate to challenge Joshua, possibly for the IBF heavyweight title if Oleksandr Usyk is stripped of the belt due to his commitment to a rematch with Tyson Fury in December.
Frank Warren, head of Queensberry Promotions, confirmed to talkSPORT that negotiations are underway for the all-British showdown. Should this fight materialize, Dubois will have the opportunity to capitalize on what McGuigan identifies as a “chink in Joshua’s armour.”
In his column for the Mirror, McGuigan emphasized that Dubois’ power could be decisive if he manages to connect cleanly with Joshua’s chin. “If he gets through to Joshua’s chin then it’s game on,” McGuigan wrote. “Joshua is the more complete fighter, marginally quicker. And he has rebuilt impressively since he lost for the second time to Usyk. There is, however, still a chink in his armour first exposed by Andy Ruiz that makes him vulnerable to the kind of power packed by Dubois.”
Despite Joshua being favored to win, McGuigan asserts that Dubois’ punching power presents a real threat. “Most would still take Joshua to win. But nothing is a given if Dubois can back up his Hrgovic victory with another mature performance,” he added.
Joshua’s susceptibility to strong punches has been a topic of discussion since his shocking knockout defeat to Andy Ruiz in 2019, where he was floored four times. Although this remains the only stoppage loss on his 28-3 record, Joshua has shown moments of vulnerability against other fighters, including Dillian Whyte and Wladimir Klitschko. However, he has also demonstrated resilience and the ability to recover from being hurt.
As Dubois gears up for what could be the biggest fight of his career, the boxing world will be watching closely to see if he can indeed exploit this perceived weakness and potentially topple one of the sport’s biggest names.
