Saturday night’s heavyweight world title clash between Daniel Dubois and Joseph Parker is in serious jeopardy due to the Brit falling sick today, it has been announced.
Dubois was set to defend his IBF world title against former champion Parker as co-main event of The Last Crescendo card in Riyadh this weekend, which many pundits believe is amongst the strongest in boxing history.
However, there are now huge doubts as to whether the bout will go ahead, after the 27-year-old reportedly fell ill ahead of Thursday’s final press conference.
The Ring Magazine posted on X that Dubois is currently being evaluated by a doctor, and that efforts are being made to source a replacement opponent for Parker should ‘DDD’ be unfit to defend his title.
‼️ The Ring has learned that IBF heavyweight world champion Daniel Dubois is sick and is currently being evaluated by a doctor. A replacement is being pursued in the event that Dubois is unable to move forward with his defense against Joseph Parker on Saturday night. pic.twitter.com/7DbYg7gCEA
— Ring Magazine (@ringmagazine) February 20, 2025
As one of the most anticipated fights on the show, Dubois vs Parker being scrapped would be a bitter blow to boxing fans worldwide.
Dubois was in the form of his life ahead of this weekend, scoring career best wins over Filip Hrgovic and Anthony Joshua in his last two outings, both of whom he stopped inside the distance.
And it has just been revealed by The Ring that British heavyweights Lawrence Okolie and David Adeleye are amongst the frontrunners to replace Dubois if he does have to pull out, alongside undefeated Frenchman, Mourad Aliev.
Lawrence Okolie, David Adeleye and Mourad Aliev are among the options being considered to potentially replace Daniel Dubois and fight Joseph Parker on Saturday night, a source has advised The Ring.
Dubois is sick and currently being evaluated by a doctor to determine whether or… pic.twitter.com/grJBzXgU0d
— Ring Magazine (@ringmagazine) February 20, 2025
Parker himself has also been in a rich vein of form over the past 18 months, during which he outpointed monster punchers Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang.
Should the fight be cancelled, it will likely have ramifications for the division as a whole, as a shot at undisputed status against Oleksandr Usyk looked likely to be in waiting for the winner.
