Frazer Clarke expects the “really hungry” Fabio Wardley to stop Daniel Dubois on Saturday evening.
At the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, England, Wardley will make the first defense of his WBO heavyweight title and does so in his most dangerous fight.
Clarke gave Wardley one of the toughest nights of his career when in March 2024 for the British and Commonwealth titles they fought to a draw. As recently as later that year, he also sparred the 28-year-old Dubois.
He revealed that Dubois is the bigger puncher of the two heavy-handed rivals, and also insists that Dubois has one of a competitive heavyweight division’s finest jabs.
It is Dubois’ mental strength that he ultimately questions most, and that contributes to him predicting victory for the undefeated Wardley, 31.
“It’s a brilliant fight,” Clarke told BoxingScene. “The winners are the fans with this one. In heavyweight boxing, we like to see knockouts – these boys don’t usually see the final bell. This one really excites me.
“Wardley’s getting better. There was a little period where there might have been a few question marks; he’s getting more comfortable in a boxing ring. He’s a very athletic boy. He has a lot of fast-twitch movements, and he’s not so orthodox, and he’s got the dog in him. When you’ve got that in you, you’ve always got a chance.
“I don’t think he’d tell you himself he’s a defensive genius. He gets hit. Dubois is definitely the hardest puncher he’s ever got in the ring with. Other than David Price, he’s the second-biggest puncher I’ve ever been in the ring with. If Wardley is doing the thing where he blocks a lot of shots with his face, you’re only human – I know he’s tough, but that will be really, really dangerous for him.
“I know Daniel has this amateur experience, but if you look at Wardley, he’s a bit cuter than people think. He’s learning all the time. He’s massively improved. He has a good jab; he has good head movement; he rolls well. If he can avoid those shots early on, he’s in with a massive chance. It’s a shootout.”
Dubois enters the all-English contest off the back of his second defeat by Oleksandr Usyk. He responded to that defeat by replacing Don Charles as his trainer with Tony Sims, and then rehiring Charles on the eve of the date with Wardley being confirmed.
“His jab is fantastic,” Clarke said of Dubois. “One of the best jabs in the division, I’d say. He’s powerful in both hands.
“[But] we’ve all seen it and we all think there’s a vulnerability [psychologically] – which is the opposite to Wardley. Wardley’s really mentally strong; when it gets tough, he can really grit it out. We’ve seen with Daniel a few times, he’s not fancied it.
“It’s a 50-50. It’s very difficult – but I think Fabio might get him early. Fabio comes out, and he’s on it, and defensively OK and jabs with him – which he might not be able to. But if he starts putting his shots together and landing, Daniel might wilt and might cower a little bit. That’s a huge, huge, huge plus for Fabio – once he gets you going, he really gets you going.
“I could change my mind. But there was something about Daniel, when they were doing the face-offs, he just looked a little bit softer [when the fight was first announced] than I’ve seen him.
“I know Fabio’s really hungry – he’s got that thing in his eyes where he’s really keen on proving the doubters wrong. He’s still got doubters, believe it or not, and I can see he’s got the bit between his teeth. When he beat Joe Parker, that should have been enough for everyone, so this is one of them. ‘People say I can’t, so I’m gonna show ‘em.’”
Declan Warrington has been writing about boxing for the British and Irish national newspapers since 2010. He is also a long-term contributor to Boxing News, Boxing News Presents and Talksport, and formerly the boxing correspondent for the Press Association, a pundit for BoxNation and a regular contributor to Boxing Monthly, Sport and The Ring, among other publications. In 2023, he conducted the interviews and wrote the script for the audio documentary “Froch-Groves: The Definitive Story”; he is also a member of the BWAA.
