Oleksandr Usyk confirmed his place in boxing’s pantheon with a stunning knockout victory over Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium in London.
The Ukrainian is now an undefeated, three-time undisputed world champion.
Usyk shook up his rival champion in the fifth round and dropped the Briton to his knees with a lead right hook at the end of a fierce exchange.
Dubois rose from the first knockdown. But Usyk found a finish of ruthless beauty, lining up a left hook that toppled the bigger man over on his back.
Image: Daniel Dubois falls to the canvas after being knocked down by Oleksandr Usyk at Wembley
The Londoner was stunned. He lay listless on the canvas, propped on one elbow but unable to beat the count.
With the fight waved off, Usyk crumpled to his knees, overwhelmed with emotion.
It marked a historic feat for the great Ukrainian.
Undisputed first at cruiserweight, Usyk, a London 2012 Olympic gold medallist, became the first undisputed heavyweight champion in a quarter of a century, and the first of the four belt era, when he first beat Tyson Fury last year.
The 38-year-old never lost the IBF championship in the ring, but could not make a mandatory defence of that when he went into an immediate rematch with Fury.
That saw Usyk vacate the IBF belt ahead of his second points victory over Fury and Dubois, previously the Interim titlist, elevated to full champion.
The Londoner had lost his first fight to Usyk in 2023 but would insist later that a beltline blow shouldn’t have been ruled low. Usyk had visited the canvas after that strike from Dubois, using his allotted time to recover from the infringement. Uysk rose and put Dubois down in the ninth round of that first fight where he was counted out.
Dubois and his team though were adamant afterwards that he’d hurt Usyk legitimately and could do so again. The 27-year-old took even more confidence from his last fight too, when he brutally knocked out Anthony Joshua in just five rounds last year, also at Wembley Stadium.
It was a performance that announced Dubois as a world-level threat and potentially the most dangerous puncher in the sport. He came into this rematch at the peak of his powers and with a new sense of self-belief.
Dubois did start positively in the first round, edging on to the front foot and holding the centre of the ring. But Usyk masterfully feinted with his southpaw jab, raising the lead right up, darting it down and he started to connect.
In the closing seconds of the first round, Usyk opened up with a brace of hooks.
Dubois held his lead left low and loose, looking to bring it in as Usyk peppered him with punches.
The Briton launched a right down on his opponent, but Usyk at once planted a solid backhand on his chin, landing with force.
In the third round Dubois struck with a flush right hand to the chin. But Usyk could still counter expertly with vicious lefts.
Dubois kept pressure on Usyk, booming rights flying into Usyk’s guard, though a shot also strayed on to the beltline too. The Ukrainian jabbed to the head, to set up a left cross to the body. A neat left hook whipped round the Londoner’s guard too.
In the fifth round, Usyk triggered Dubois’ downfall. He stepped in with a one-two combination. Dubois tried to blast punches back at him. But Usyk had seen the vulnerabilities and didn’t hesitate to apply the perfect, final flourishes.
They fired their punches into each other, but Usyk’s were the accurate shots, shaking up Dubois, dropping him twice and leaving no questions about their rivalry, and no dispute about his own greatness.
“38 is a young guy, remember. 38 is only the start,” Usyk said in triumph. “This is for the people, it’s for our world’s people.
“This is enough. Next? I don’t know. I want to rest.
“I want to go back home to my wife, my family.”
‘I gave everything I had’
“I have to commend him, I gave everything I had,” Dubois said afterwards. “There we some things I could have sharpened up on, but I’ll be back.
“I was in a fight, I was trying to pick it round by round, but it is what it is, I’ll be back.”
