Frank Warren likens Daniel Dubois to Mike Tyson rival ahead of undisputed fight

On Saturday night, exclusively live on DAZN PPV, Dubois will be looking to continue what has been a hard-hitting and successful journey at Wembley Stadium when he faces Usyk for a second time, this time for all the marbles at heavyweight.

Two years have passed since Usyk stopped Dubois in the ninth round of their meeting in Poland, but ‘Dynamite’ did not let the loss deter him from pursuing greatness.

Knockout wins over Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Anthony Joshua in September have got Dubois to this point, however, it's not just inside the ring where the 27-year-old has improved.

Outside of the boxing arena, Dubois has evolved as a person, becoming more confident and vocal in media events, something which was absent when he turned professional in 2017.

His all-British showdown with Joshua saw Dubois create plenty of headlines, most notably for how he stood up to AJ during a face-off.

Dubois’ promoter Frank Warren was in the room when this confrontation took place and he likened the way his charge acted to how Evander Holyfield coped with Mike Tyson in his back-to-back world title wins in 1996 and 1997.

“Anthony Joshua is from the streets. Daniel is not a street guy, his dad from a young age programmed him to be a boxer, that’s been his life. There’s none of that street stuff,” Warren said.

“Around the table, Joshua was saying ‘show me some respect’, all this stuff, he came out of his skin, he said what he had to say.

“Mike Tyson beat 95% of his opponents before they got in the ring, it’s a street thing.

“He didn’t beat Holyfield, because Holyfield would not stand for none of that stuff, he was a real professional boxer and didn’t stand for that stuff, and he beat Tyson twice.”

Known as ‘The Baddest Man on the Planet’, Tyson often struck fear into his opponents before a punch was thrown. One prime example was his world title fight against Michael Spinks in 1988.

After Spinks made his entrance, a droning noise was blasted into Atlantic City’s Convention Hall with Tyson charging towards the ring, flanked by security in just his black shorts and black boots.

Tyson would beat Spinks by knockout in the first round, a clear sign of Tyson beating his opponents mentally before the opening bell.

Usyk on the other hand presents a different challenge for Dubois compared to Joshua.

The Ukrainian is someone who gives very little away in the build-up to his fights and often plays mind games of his own.

While Warren acknowledges the test Usyk will pose inside and outside the ring, he claims some cracks are appearing in the unified champion’s armour following a press conference for his fight with Dubois in May.

“This fight is totally different because in this fight you’ve got a guy who comes from a war-torn country, he’s fought on the road, he’s been a road warrior from day one.

“He’s won a gold medal at the Olympics, he’s unified the cruiserweight belts, he’s done the same at heavyweight, he is not fazed by anything.

“At the launch press conference, Dubois definitely got under his skin.”

Whether this is the case, the boxing world will not have long to find out when Usyk and Dubois battle it out for a place in boxing history on Saturday night.