It says a lot about where Anthony Joshua is in his career that questions about Saturday’s opponent Daniel Dubois usually come after those about two men who won’t be in the ring at Wembley.
For the best part of a decade now Joshua has been among an elite group at the top of the heavyweight division, so perhaps it’s only natural he should be asked so frequently about Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury, who will meet again later this year for three versions of the heavyweight title.
The other, the IBF’s, will be on the line this weekend in one of the most pivotal fights of Joshua’s career.
Victory will put him in line to fight the winner of that December bout in Riyadh, and potentially complete the type of redemption arc that makes boxing such a compelling and cinematic sport.
Defeats to Andy Ruiz and Usyk may have forced the 34-year-old to rebuild his career, but nobody has done more to revitalise heavyweight boxing than the 2012 Olympic gold medallist.
That’s a fact he can underline once again at the weekend in front of a record 96,000 sell-out crowd against a dangerous underdog who arrives in great form after impressive wins against Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic.
Victory over Dubois would add yet more depth to a resume only unified champion Usyk can trump. It’s also a chance to join the select few who have claimed a version of the title on three occasions, alongside stellar names such as Muhammad Ali, Lennox Lewis and Evander Holyfield.
"He is definitely dialled in," said Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn. "He seems a bit more like: 'I must win this fight’. He's talked a little bit more about legacy, and then he kind of reins it in and goes back to: 'No, it's about performance’. But I think he realises firstly how much he needs to win; and two, the value of being world champion again – and the legacy that comes with it.”
Joshua could also emulate Lewis in winning an all-British world title stadium fight that will captivate the nation just as his predecessor did when stopping a game Frank Bruno at Cardiff Arms Park in 1993.
Joshua’s career has been full of such spectacular moments – none more so than the first time he filled Wembley for his statement victory over Wladimir Klitschko in 2017.
However, seven years later, that remains his best win, and perhaps the chief reason the names Usyk and Fury tend to follow him around. For all the highlight reel knockouts and bumper crowds, Joshua is still searching for that signature victory over one of his elite contemporaries.
From 2016 to 2018, there was a big two – Joshua and the American Deontay Wilder – but as was often the case before Saudi Arabia's involvement in the sport, rival promoters failed to make it happen.
Fury’s return from his long hiatus to challenge Wilder in 2018 made that a big three before Usyk’s rise from cruiserweight established a big four in 2020. Wilder’s subsequent decline has trimmed that number back again.
Joshua has never shared a ring with Wilder. His long-running rivalry with Fury remains unconsummated. He is 0-2 against Usyk.
That might seem a harsh assessment of a man who has done so much to enrich the sport, but ultimately these are the type of fights that will define his legacy. As a self-confessed scholar of boxing history, he will know that better than anyone.
"If they call me to fight them, 100 per cent. It's what I do. Fight. I'll be ready. It'll be an honour to fight them two," Joshua said this week. "[But] I'm not focusing on Usyk and Fury. I'll watch it. Let me get past Dubois. We'll see."
At 34, Joshua arrives at Wembley as a heavy favourite, riding a four-fight winning streak and looking as good as he has done in a long time under new coach Ben Davison.
Another spectacular performance will crank up the hype for an undisputed bout against either Fury or Usyk in the first half of 2025.
Both possibilities present unfavourable style match-ups for Joshua, but both are also nearing the end of their careers, and how these next two fights play out will invariably alter perceptions once again.
Lewis was famously introduced by ring announcer Michael Buffer as having beaten every man he had faced “by way of rematch”. The same could be said of Joshua if he can get past Dubois and somehow find a way to overcome his nemesis Usyk, while a historic bout against domestic rival Fury surely remains both his grail and his endgame.
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The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh12 million
Engine 8.0-litre quad-turbo, W16
Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch auto
Power 1479 @ 6,700rpm
Torque 1600Nm @ 2,000rpm 0-100kph: 2.6 seconds 0-200kph: 6.1 seconds
Top speed 420 kph (governed)
Fuel economy, combined 35.2L / 100km (est)
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere
Director: Scott Cooper
Starring: Jeremy Allen White, Odessa Young, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 4/5
THE SPECS
Jaguar F-Pace SVR
Engine: 5-litre supercharged V8
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 542bhp
Torque: 680Nm
Price: Dh465,071
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
The biog
Favourite Emirati dish: Fish machboos
Favourite spice: Cumin
Family: mother, three sisters, three brothers and a two-year-old daughter
Section 375
Cast: Akshaye Khanna, Richa Chadha, Meera Chopra & Rahul Bhat
Director: Ajay Bahl
Producers: Kumar Mangat Pathak, Abhishek Pathak & SCIPL
Rating: 3.5/5
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Key recommendations
- Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
- Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
- Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
- More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.
Syria squad
Goalkeepers: Ibrahim Alma, Mahmoud Al Youssef, Ahmad Madania.
Defenders: Ahmad Al Salih, Moayad Ajan, Jehad Al Baour, Omar Midani, Amro Jenyat, Hussein Jwayed, Nadim Sabagh, Abdul Malek Anezan.
Midfielders: Mahmoud Al Mawas, Mohammed Osman, Osama Omari, Tamer Haj Mohamad, Ahmad Ashkar, Youssef Kalfa, Zaher Midani, Khaled Al Mobayed, Fahd Youssef.
Forwards: Omar Khribin, Omar Al Somah, Mardik Mardikian.
RESULTS
5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: Samau Xmnsor, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Ottoman, Szczepan Mazur, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner: Sharkh, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 85,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner: Yaraa, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri
7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Maaly Al Reef, Bernardo Pinheiro, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Jinjal, Fabrice Veron, Ahmed Al Shemaili
8pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Al Sail, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
Shooting Ghosts: A U.S. Marine, a Combat Photographer, and Their Journey Back from War by Thomas J. Brennan and Finbarr O’Reilly
Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Date: Sunday, November 25
New Zealand T20 squad
New Zealand T20 squad: Tim Southee (captain), Finn Allen, Todd Astle, Hamish Bennett, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway (wicketkeeper), Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Adam Milne, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Ish Sodhi, Will Young
FIXTURES
Thu Mar 15 – West Indies v Afghanistan, UAE v Scotland
Fri Mar 16 – Ireland v Zimbabwe
Sun Mar 18 – Ireland v Scotland
Mon Mar 19 – West Indies v Zimbabwe
Tue Mar 20 – UAE v Afghanistan
Wed Mar 21 – West Indies v Scotland
Thu Mar 22 – UAE v Zimbabwe
Fri Mar 23 – Ireland v Afghanistan
The top two teams qualify for the World Cup
Classification matches
The top-placed side out of Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong or Nepal will be granted one-day international status. UAE and Scotland have already won ODI status, having qualified for the Super Six.
Thu Mar 15 – Netherlands v Hong Kong, PNG v Nepal
Sat Mar 17 – 7th-8th place playoff, 9th-10th place playoff
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Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Match info
Manchester United 1 (Van de Beek 80') Crystal Palace 3 (Townsend 7', Zaha pen 74' & 85')
Man of the match Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace)
