Daniel Dubois comeback plan is revealed – with late May the ideal return for Greenwich heavyweight

BY RICHARD CAWLEY
richard@slpmedia.co.uk

Daniel Dubois is being lined up for a ring return in late May as the Greenwich heavyweight looks to rebuild his career.

The 23-year-old was mapping out plans for a world title shot but quit in the 10th round against Joe Joyce in November after suffering major damage to his left eye.

Dubois had looked superb in sweeping through 15 opponents since his professional switch in April – 14 of those victories coming inside the distance.

But the South Londoner has had to absorb stinging criticism after failing in his European title challenge against Joyce. He has ditched Mark Bowers as his trainer and will work with Mark Tibbs.

Dubois’ promoter Frank Warren told iFL TV: “We’ve got a couple of dates in mind [for his next fight] – end of May or early June.

“All that matters now is the future. You learn from yesterday. But no matter how many times all of us sit here and say ‘I wish we had done this or that’ – it’s irrelevant. It’s what you do now and what you do in the future that counts.”

Warren has likened Dubois’ situation to Amir Khan, whose unbeaten record was ended by a brutal KO defeat by the unheralded Breidis Prescott in 2008.

The Olympic silver medallist went on to win the WBA and IBF world titles at light-welterweight – picking up the first of those in his third bout after being blown away by the Colombian puncher.

“That is what he [Dubois] has got to look at,” said the veteran fight figure. “He is a young man. He is not some 30 or 32-year-old. He has not got a lot of miles on the clock.

“It was a bloody good fight [against Joyce]. I’d like to see a rematch down the line. He’s had a bump in the road and now he needs to get over that.”

Bowers still has a contract as Dubois’ manager.

“I won’t be training Dan – he’s moved on,” said Bowers. “But this is all about Dan’s career and not any other individuals.

“If you look at the scorecards, Dan was in front [against Joyce at the time of the stoppage]. I would say when he got injured in the third round it changed the pattern of the fight. Dan had that bad eye and his depth perception changed quite a lot.

“He wasn’t moving his head as much as he should and could have. But we can all analyse it and be clever afterwards.

“He lost one fight. You don’t become a bad fighter overnight. It’s experience.”

Dubois is still ranked 18th by the WBC and 11th by the WBO.

“I want to prove the doubters they’ve got it wrong,” he said.

“That I’m going to be back and better than ever. I’m going to go back to the drawing board.”

Streatham super-bantamweight Chris Bourke is set to defend his WBC International title on a bill at the Copper Box Arena on March 27.

There are other South London boxers due to be in action next month. Lewisham’s Dan Azeez (12-0) puts his English light-heavyweight belt on the line against Ricky Summers in Bolton on April 17.

And Battersea’s Denzel Bentley is set for an intriguing clash with Commonwealth champion Felix Cash on April 24.

Bentley (14-0-1) won the British middleweight title with a clinical pounding of Mark Heffron in November.