Filip Hrgovic Confident He Will Stop Daniel Dubois In Heavyweight Clash
Heavyweight contender Filip Hrgovic believes he holds several advantages over Saturday’s opponent Daniel Dubois, and he plans to use them to complete a stoppage victory.
Hrgovic (17-0-0 14 KO) and Dubois (20-2-0 19 KO) are set to clash in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia as part of the Matchroom Boxing vs Queensberry Promotions 5-vs-5 event. The Croatian will represent Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom while British fighter Dubois is promoted by Frank Warren and Queensberry.
Away from the team element of the event, this is a heavyweight showdown between two fighters determined to remain in contention for a world title shot in the near future. Hrgovic is already the mandatory challenger for the IBF title but a victory for Dubois will put ‘Dynamite’ right back in the frame.
Dubois may have two defeats on his record, but he’s mixed it with better company than his upcoming opponent. His only losses came against Joe Joyce – when he retired with a fractured eye socket – and unified (now undisputed) world champion Oleksandr Usyk. The Briton’s most recent bout was a thrilling 12th-round knockout of Jarrell Miller in arguably the best performance of his career.
Hrgovic Holds ‘Psychological Advantage’
Hrgovic, meanwhile, may be unbeaten but his only top-level opponent was China’s Zhilei Zhang, whom he defeated via split decision in August 2022. His last fight, in December, was a horrible mismatch against Mark De Mori – who taught himself how to box on YouTube.
Hrgovic and Dubois have shared a ring in the past and both fighters admit that those sparring sessions were dominated by the Croatian, who feels that could give him a slight advantage mentally, even if those spars were several years ago when Dubois was still a young, raw talent.
“I think I have a psychological advantage with that sparring session, but the fight is a fight. That was a long time ago. We’ll see what’s going on this Saturday,” Hrgovic said in an interview with the Queensberry Promotions YouTube channel.
Perhaps unfairly, Dubois earned a reputation for being a quitter following his defeat to Joyce when he voluntarily took a knee due to the pain caused from the broken eye socket. Since then, though, ‘Dynamite’ gave Usyk a stern test before being stopped in the ninth round, and showed his heart by knocking out Miller in a gruelling bout last time out.
Dubois ‘Doesn’t Like To Be Hit’
“[Dubois] quit two times. It’s not good for a fighter to quit, but I think he’s a solid fighter,” said Hrgovic. “He proved in some fights that he’s a good fighter, especially in his last fight. He proved that he can also fight in the late rounds as well.”
In addition to believing he has a psychological advantage, Hrgovic is convinced he has physical and skill advantages, too, and he is determined to prove it on Saturday in Saudi Arabia.
“I think he [Dubois] has a problem with receiving punches that he doesn’t like. He doesn’t like to receive punches and be hit. He’s not so good with that. I think I’m the opposite. I proved that I have a really good chin,” added Hrgovic.
“I was never stopped in over 100 amateur fights and never in sparring. I think I have that quality of never giving up, and I think if I put good pressure and if I hit him with my best shots, I will stop him.”
There was talk that this fight could be for the IBF world title, with the governing body expected to strip Usyk of the title for failing to face mandatory challenger Hrgovic. However, while it still could get announced in the last few days before the fight, it seems unlikely.
