On Tuesday at a hotel in the shadow of Wembley Stadium it was Frank Warren who mostly spoke on behalf of Daniel Dubois, the IBF heavyweight champion. On Wednesday, at his public workout equally nearby, it was instead his trainer Don Charles.
Oleksandr Usyk, the 38-year-old Ukrainian recognised as the finest fighter of his generation, handled Tuesday’s promotional and media commitments even more effectively than had the veteran, hall-of-fame inductee and promoter whose stake in Saturday’s contest is perhaps the biggest.
Such is Usyk’s comfort in his identity, his abilities, and his remarkable achievements – the WBO, WBA and WBC heavyweight titles among them – he consistently spoke with warmth and occasionally elaborated when he felt moved to, but he otherwise went through the motions as he has so many times before.
He has twice experienced being in the decreasing shadows of Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury, and first fought Dubois while the shadow cast by Fury loomed particularly large. Entering Saturday’s contest it is perhaps only those closest to Dubois determined to promote him as a threat to Usyk in the way that Joshua and Fury were once considered. There is, as ever, a promotional and therefore financial incentive involved in doing so, but from the perspective of the paternal, passionate and loyal Charles it is his impressional fighter’s psyche that is being invested in the most.
“I’m switched on and focused; ready to cause chaos in that ring and ready to go,” said Dubois on Wednesday when encouraged by one of his colleagues at Queensberry Promotions to offer a soundbite those watching and listening could buy into. “I’m grateful for this opportunity and ready to seize it; ready for the moment.”
Asked about his repeated use of the word “chaos”, he responded: “Tune in on Saturday because we’re going to get that victory – come on!
“The whole team – to the whole team it means a lot to us. We’ve worked hard for this – we’re not going to let this one go.”
The 27-year-old Dubois had perhaps been persuaded that he “let one go” when he was previously stopped by Usyk, regardless of the reality that the punch that sent the Ukrainian to the canvas had rightly been ruled low.
Since then Charles and Warren have worked the rebuild an often gentle giant’s conviction and confidence, and after stoppages of Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Joshua – one career-best victory followed by the next – there is little question that while preparing for Usyk the second time, “chaos” has been the buzzword at Charles’ gym.
The charismatic Usyk is counterintuitively stoic when appropriate, and he remained that way at Wednesday’s workouts – he arrived and worked out to techno music in acknowledgment of his eastern-European roots.
Perhaps he said even more than Dubois when he ultimately said nothing, but it was while he was in the ring that Charles was interviewed, and in so doing revealed the extent of the confidence that represents their greatest chance.
“It’s all a moment – it’s a team moment,” the trainer told DAZN. “This is what Daniel – from the minute Daniel became a boxer, this is what it’s all led to. All the hard work; all the sacrifices that this man has made, he hasn’t had what we would call a ‘normal’ childhood, but he’s sacrificed a lot for Saturday night.”
When he was told that leading Dubois to victory would transform his status to that of a “legendary” trainer, he then responded: “That is intentioned. That is what’s going to happen. You know me – I’m a spiritual person. From the minute I landed in England as a 14-year-old, young man, it became apparent this is what it’s all about.
“We’ve already reached one milestone which is Daniel becoming a world champion. To go further and become the undisputed [champion] – whenever I say that I get goosebumps. Honestly.
“Most definitely [he’s still improving]. In my opinion, Usyk is meeting Daniel Dubois at the wrong time for Usyk, and Daniel’s meeting Usyk at the right time for Daniel Dubois. The age – you’re at your best; any man – we’re all at our best when we’re 27. Physically, and mentally, Daniel Dubois is in a very good place.
“You are the company you keep. The people around him right now, everything just fits – it really does. There’s a number of factors that leads to the Daniel Dubois you’re looking at. Not just one thing – a number of positive factors. It’s a collective effort.
“In my dream, it plays out Daniel Dubois, business as usual. He’s going to win this fight emphatically, with a knockout. I’ve told you – K-O.
“Not taking nothing away from [Usyk]. He’s a legend, irrespective of what happens. When Daniel beats him he’s gonna go down as one of the greats. [Usyk] doesn’t have to prove anything else.”
Before he finished speaking Charles acknowledged that he had modelled the explosive Dubois’ training camp on that of the retired Wladimir Klitschko, one of the most recent predecessors to Usyk’s status as the world’s finest heavyweight.
After the trainer’s departure it was also suggested – by the retired Carl Frampton, not Charles – that boxing is “a young man’s game”.
Frampton, however, on behalf of DAZN was promoting Saturday’s contest. Even if what he said is so often true, he will know that Usyk is a youthful 38, and that even aged 38, Dubois is attempting to dethrone the most complete-and-professional active fighter of them all.
