Simon Jordan has exposed the bizarre reason why Daniel Dubois arrived 45 minutes late for his heavyweight championship rematch against Oleksandr Usyk. The British pundit claimed Dubois' father threw a party with dozens of strangers at the boxer's home just hours before the fight.
"There was a party at Dubois' house before the fight. There were 50, 60, 70 people that the boy didn't even know, so he had to go somewhere else because he didn't know anyone at the party," Jordan revealed on talkSPORT.
According to the former Crystal Palace owner, this chaotic preparation contributed to Dubois showing up less than two hours before his ring walk. Things got even messier when his entourage arrived at the venue.
"Then you arrive at the fight and people want this whole entourage let in. And security guards are being told that if they don't let them in, Daniel won't fight," Jordan explained.
The British boxing analyst didn't hold back when discussing the relationship between Dubois and his father, suggesting it might be more harmful than helpful. He pointed out that even trainer Don Charles essentially works for Dubois' father rather than directly for the boxer.
"I'm not looking for excuses, but I'm just saying I'm not sure the preparation on fight day was at the level it should have been. I'm not saying Usyk wouldn't have done the same to Dubois, but all this didn't help him," Jordan concluded.
Worth noting, Dubois was knocked out in the fifth round by Usyk, who retained his status as undisputed heavyweight champion. Could proper pre-fight preparation have changed anything? We'll never know, but showing up late after a house party certainly isn't textbook boxing preparation.
