Usyk wins by 9th round KO, but should he have made it out the 5th round?
Last night Daniel Dubois fought IBF, IBO, WBA, and WBO champion Oleksandr Usyk in a fight that ended in controversy, which isn’t shocking in the boxing world, but how it happened is a little uncommon.
Dubois was once an upcoming prospect in the struggling heavyweight division until he ran into, the then undefeated, Joe Joyce on 11/28/2020 in Westminster, where he lost by knock out. He racked up 4 stoppages after that bout but analysts and fans haven’t held him to the same regards, which he was hoping he could revive with this fight.
He started off the fight competing against the faster more skilled Usyk and in the 5th, he dropped Usyk with a body shot that sent him wincing in pain, but the referee called it a low blow, and urged Usyk to take almost the entire 5 minutes allowed to recover.
Usyk went on to stop Dubois in the 9th round in beautiful fashion, but the debatable incident was in the 5th round; looking at the replay of the “low blow” it seemed to be a legal punch that landed right on the belt line.
A lot of people are calling it a robbery, and it’s easy to see why, but there are some who explain the confusion and the reason the call was so controversial, but it all points to the ref being incompetent.
First, the ref, during his pre-fight speech, did not show both fighters where the legal punches had to be like refs always do, which is usually the belt line, but some have been known to say the punches need to be above the belt, but he never specified, so it was anybody’s guess.
Secondly, the problem I had, which made me suspicious of the whole ordeal, is once Usyk said he was ready to fight, after the “low blow”, the ref basically pushed him back into the corner and told him to take more time… If the fighter says he’s ready, the ref not immediately starting the fight leads to speculation; he helped Usyk rest for longer, but why? Why would he help a fighter unless he has something to lose or he was following orders.
I’m not sure what exactly happened in the 5th round, but something doesn’t smell right, and this is another black eye for the sport, and fittingly so.
The world is waiting for an undisputed match between Usyk and the other belt holder Tyson Fury, so him losing would’ve derailed those plans. It’s a hard pill to swallow for some, but that could be the reason for this 5th round oddity, but of course we will never know, like other times an upset was imminent in fights where bigger fights were already anticipated.
These scenarios are always hard for the fighter getting the short end of the stick, but that’s boxing, and leaving the outcome to the judges can always lead to questionable judgments and controversy.
“That should have been a knockout. I’m feeling gutted. It wasn’t a low blow. I felt it land perfectly, smack into his stomach. I know for sure when I land a good shot.” Daniel Dubois
Dubois definitely feels cheated and rightfully so, but I don’t think it can be corrected. Even if there is a mandated rematch, which Dubois’s team claimed they were going to petition for, it’ll be hard as hell to strike gold twice.
Hats off to both fighters for their courage and competitiveness but it’s a shame when fights end like this, especially for a fighter that’s trying to make a name for himself and felt he did but had it taken away.
“I definitely want a rematch – get justice, get a rematch, get something to happen. We’ve been working in the gym for weeks and weeks on end on that shot. We pulled it off and that should have been our moment. That should have been a knockout!” Daniel Dubois
