The September 21 heavyweight world title clash between Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois is drawing ever nearer, and the back-and-forth between the teams is also growing.
A moment from when Joshua and Dubois faced off went viral earlier this summer, as they had to be separated after a verbal exchange.
‘AJ’ accused his younger adversary of “disrespecting” him before threatening to attack him with a chair.
And Dubois’ coach Don Charles has clapped back at the former two-time world champion, who he claimed was acting out of character.
In a recent interview with BoxNation, Charles stated:
“I wasn’t present, but obviously I have seen the clip.
“It was very uncharacteristic of Anthony Joshua, that’s not him, threatening to be violent, threatening to pick up a stool.
“That’s not him. He also said, ‘don’t disrespect me.’
“I’ll throw this chair across your f*****g face!” 🤬😤
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“I want to know – in what part of all of it, did Daniel Dubois disrespect him?
“Everybody calls everybody out. So I don’t see where the disrespectfulness is coming from.
“I don’t think they woke up and said, ‘let’s go and fight Daniel Dubois,’ I don’t believe that.”
Dubois looks to be in the best form of his career at the moment, and goes into the blockbuster off the back of stoppage wins against Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic.
Joshua, however, represents a significant step-up in class and also looks to be operating close to his best.
The 2012 Olympic gold medalist has scored three stoppage victories in as many bouts, and seems to be at home at Ben Davison’s gym in Harlow.
Should Joshua emerge victorious and capture the IBF strap in just over two weeks’ time, he will become only the fifth, three-time heavyweight world champion in boxing history.
A win could also pave the way for a mammoth undisputed showdown with Tyson Fury in 2025, though that would also depend on ‘The Gypsy King’ defeating Oleksandr Usyk in their rematch on December 21 if all four belts are to be on the line.
