Usyk vs Dubois II - Launch Press Conference!
(April 30th) Ahead of the first ever Undisputed Heavyweight Championship of the World clash on British soil on July 19, the two champions Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois were at Wembley Stadium today on media duty before intensifying preparations for the historic occasion.
Below are a selection of key quotes from the opening press conference:
Frank Warren
“It will be a massive night and a historic one for British sport because the undisputed title has never been fought for in the UK. There will be four belts on the line and it is history-making stuff.
“It is an opportunity for Daniel to etch his name in British sporting history. If he wins this fight he will be the first Brit to hold the four belts and that is a great, great carrot for him to go and get. This is a fight against Oleksandr, who is looked at as being the best heavyweight of his generation and he was certainly the best cruiserweight of his generation. He also won a gold medal at the Olympic Games.
“He has done everything asked of him, he is undefeated and he is a magnificent fighter. Every Brit he has fought he has got the decision against or stopped them.
“We are going to sell out here and it will be a fantastic night. Daniel is on a magnificent run since his controversial loss against Oleksandr and he has done everything in style, beating three world class fighters. He has shown what he is all about.
“On 19 July we are going to see history, we are going to see the best fighting the best, the No.1 against the No.2. The two best active heavyweights in the world putting it all on the line and it is going to be something magnificent.
“The low blow is done and dusted. It was not Daniel’s time and the referee, for me, got it wrong. He can put that right on the 19th. We can’t change what happened, we can bleat and bitch about it, but look at the record books and it says what it is. It is all about now.”
Alex Krassyuk
“It is always a pleasure to be back to London with the best boxing audience you can find in the world. As they say, wisdom is the fruit of experience and this can be very much related to boxing. You know what, Daniel Dubois had his priceless experience in the first fight and now he is not a kid anymore. Now he is a mature man with the IBF belt around his waist.
“The one who underestimates him does terribly wrong. I have a protégé next to me, who has completed it all and, do you know what, he is still hungry and ready to expose his version of wisdom on July 19 here at Wembley. Fighting, by the way, for something historical that has never been done before. Formerly Oleksandr thought he would be playing at Wembley, now he will be fighting at Wembley.
“One more important thing to know. This time you will see a version of Usyk you have never seen before. No more controversies, no more question marks, let the victory go to the one who deserves it more.”
Don Charles
“Me personally I have a lot of respect for you as a fighter, what you have achieved is remarkable, but it disappoints me that you can bring the type of photos you are looking at (pictures of ‘low blow’ signed by Usyk and Dubois). Why don’t you bring a print of the actual shot that had you trembling. You’ve heard of the Oscars? You should be given one for the acting you did that night, for the performance. You conned the referee, you conned us, you conned the boxing world. I’ve always maintained that and I still do.”
Oleksandr Usyk
“I believe you are jealous (to Don Charles). You are right, I deserve an Oscar. Listen, you must teach your fighter to punch clean, but I won the fight with a jab. Enough.
“I don’t think about these people (who say he cheated) because it is just talking. Listen, boxing is my life. A lot of people said ‘you won’t make heavyweight’ or be a four-belt cruiserweight. You know what I say? We’ll see.
“For me it doesn’t matter, it is my road, just my road, blah, blah, blah. I am ready right now, not after tomorrow, right now. It is all only talk. I respect this team and I respect all my opponents, those from the UK and the rest of the world.
Daniel Dubois
“Yeah (I was cheated) but it is in the past now. It happened and I get the chance to put that wrong right and clear up the controversy. There is a lot of sh*t being talked about right now and I can’t wait to put him to sleep on the night.
“I think I am on fire now, I’m on fire and just pent up and ready to go. It is going to be a bloodbath and I will put all the nonsense to rest. I will show I am a man of the future.
“I know that in the ring on the night he will be doing a funny dance when I hit him.”
A new undisputed heavyweight champion of the world will be crowned on Saturday, July 19 at Wembley Stadium, the home of English football, where unified WBC, WBO and WBA world champion Oleksandr Usyk and IBF world champion Daniel Dubois will fight for all the belts in a historic event on UK soil, broadcast live on DAZN Worldwide and promoted by Hall of Fame promoter Frank Warren for Queensberry and Ready To Fight.
The fighters will come face-to-face at the launch press conference at 2pm on Tuesday, 29 April.
Tickets for the blockbuster undisputed clash go on general sale at 12pm on Wednesday, 30 April available from ticketmaster.co.uk. Under the sponsorship of Riyadh Season, Usyk and Dubois will now battle to unite all the heavyweight titles for the second time in 14 months, with the previous undisputed clash having taken place in November 1999 when Lennox Lewis defeated Evander Holyfield.
For Oleksandr Usyk, 38, this fight is an attempt to become the undisputed champion for the third time. The Ukrainian first won this title in cruiserweight in 2018. Later, in May 2024, Usyk subsequently entered into his original undisputed match with WBC champion Tyson Fury in May 2024 and was declared victor via a split decision, before repeating his success with unified honours at stake in December.
For Dubois, it is a rematch of their first meeting in Wroclaw, Poland in August 2023, where his body shot in the fifth round was deemed illegal by the referee and Usyk was afforded over four minutes of recovery time. Deflated by the overrule of his knockdown and ultimately stopped in the ninth, Dubois never agreed with the referee’s decision and has been pushing for a rematch ever since.
Since his Usyk reverse, Dubois, 27, has put together a treble of resounding victories by overcoming the previously undefeated Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic, followed by a Wembley destruction of former unified champion Anthony Joshua.
His IBF Interim title success over Hrgovic was later upgraded to full champion status, with his encounter with Joshua being his first defence of the title. A scheduled second defence against former WBO world champion Joseph Parker in February was called off at late notice due to illness.
Never before has an undisputed heavyweight championship been fought for on British soil and attendance and viewing figure records in the UK and Europe are likely to be shattered on what will be a monumental night for the sport.
“I’m grateful to God for the opportunity to once again fight for the undisputed championship,” said Oleksandr Usyk. “Thank you, Daniel, for taking care of my IBF belt — now I want it back.”
“This is the fight I wanted and demanded and now I get my chance for revenge against Oleksandr Usyk,” said Dubois. “I should have won the first fight and was denied by the judgement of the referee, so I will make no mistake this time around in front of my people at the national stadium in my home city. I am a superior and more dangerous fighter now and Usyk will find this out for himself on July 19. I would like to thank my promoter Frank for making this happen for me and I intend to repay him by becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.”
“I am thrilled to deliver this historic undisputed occasion for Daniel at Wembley Stadium,” said promoter Frank Warren. “It will be an honour to promote a sporting event of this magnitude and a privilege to bring over a champion of the stature of Oleksandr. I would like to thank Oleksandr and his team at Ready to Fight for their great cooperation in making this fight become a reality. I am certain that we will see the best of British both in and outside of the ring, from Daniel and the unrivalled fight fans who will pack out the biggest sporting venue in the country.”
“Both teams have done tremendous work to make this fight a reality. Even more work is waiting ahead, especially for Oleksandr and Daniel themselves. I’m confident no one will be left disappointed,” said Egis Klimas, Oleksandr Usyk’s manager.
“Thank you to Queensberry Promotions for the cooperation, as well as Riyadh Season and DAZN for their support,” said Sergey Lapin, the CEO of Ready To Fight and Usyk’s team director. “This will not only be a great bout, but also a unique event in terms of entertainment. We are ready to deliver the Undisputed Resolution to all boxing fans worldwide.”
“We are delighted to add Usyk vs Dubois II to the DAZN calendar,” said Michael Ridout, EVP New Business, DAZN. “An already packed fight diary has just got bigger with such an era-defining fight at the home of English Football. Usyk, a nailed-on future Hall-of Famer, puts his legacy on the line against Dubois, a fighter who sees this as an opportunity to right a wrong. I personally cannot wait for this match-up and look forward to showing fans around the World in the build-up, and on fight night, why DAZN is the global home of boxing.”
About Frank Warren
In an era spanning over 35 years, Hall of Fame boxing Promoter and Manager Frank Warren has worked with some of the biggest fighters in boxing history. Hamed, Bruno, Tyson, Calzaghe, Benn, Collins, Eubank, Khan and Hatton are some of the iconic names he has promoted during his career.
BoxNation
In 2011 Frank launched the innovative direct to consumer TV model, BoxNation as part of a vision that saw the sports TV market evolving from the traditional reliance on major satellite and cable broadcasters.
Since then BoxNation has gone from strength to strength becoming the UK’s fastest growing independent subscription broadcaster in the process and showcasing the biggest fights from at home and abroad, along the way.
Through Queensberry Promotions and BoxNation, the future of British boxing has never looked in such great shape.
About TNT Sports
BT Sport is a group of pay television sports channels provided by BT Consumer; a division of BT Group in the United Kingdom and Ireland that was launched on 1 August 2013. The channels are based at the former International Broadcast Centre at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London.
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