New heavyweight champion climbed off the canvas twice before overwhelming Fabio Wardley in a battle that finally silenced his doubters
“I
was in there with a live dog and I loved it,” Daniel Dubois said in the early hours of Sunday morning as, looking suitably gladiatorial without a shirt, the new WBO world heavyweight champion reflected on the monumental battle he had just shared with the valiant Fabio Wardley in Manchester. “He came to win and it was a real crowd-pleaser. We had a great fight.”
At ringside it had been a sobering privilege to see the courage and resolve of both men in a contest that captured the glory and the damage of boxing in equal measure. Dubois rose from the canvas twice, with the first knockdown coming a mere 10 seconds after the opening bell, but Wardley endured a sustained form of punishment which became increasingly worrying. He was a stricken and weaving figure at the end, refusing to succumb until the referee, Howard Foster, finally rescued him early in the 11th round.
Wardley is not a skilful fighter and he swung and missed wildly on many occasions. But he carries real power and he forced Dubois to join him in showing an iron will from the outset. Before the fourth round, and having been on the canvas for a second time, Dubois was slapped lightly across the face by his trainer, Don Charles. “I needed that slap just to wake up, to stay in reality,” Dubois said. “You can’t slip back. As a warrior you have to dig deep, go to that dark place and come out on top. I wasn’t going to be denied. I had my dad and my people in my corner and I wasn’t going to let them down.”
