Former WBO cruiserweight world champion Johnny Nelson has given his view on Saturday’s Oleksandr Usyk vs Daniel Dubois rematch.
Usyk and Dubois will fight for the undisputed heavyweight championship at Wembley Stadium.
NewBettingOffers.co.uk have the latest odds for the rematch.
Usyk and Dubois are set to meet in the ring for a second time this weekend since their first clash in 2023, which the Ukrainian won by ninth round stoppage.
Nelson spoke to Pro Boxing Fans and explained the attributes Dubois carries that may lead him to victory.
“I don’t think technically he is better than Usyk or smarter than Usyk
“You saw when he hit ‘AJ’ once he’d got he going he got him going.
“The two people that have given Usyk a hard time, one of them was Derek Chisora and even though Derek lost, Derek didn’t give him space to breath he just took the pace away from him.
“Dubois is the younger fighter, he’s experienced failure, he’s experienced losing as a professional but he also had a bit of success in that fight.
“He’s got to use his youth, his power, his pace and if he takes the pace away from Usyk than you’ve got to give him a chance.”
Nelson compared Usyk’s former opponents including Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua.
Usyk picked up his first heavyweight world titles against Joshua in their first clash.
He also became the first undisputed heavyweight world champion in the four-belt era against Tyson Fury.
“If he stands off him, tries to outsmart him like fury and ‘AJ’ did it won’t work.
“He’s got to try and be a bit ignorant when looking at Usyk because every time Usyk boxes somebody once he beats them better the second time around.
“He needs to put it on him, he’s 27-years-old so he has more pace than Usyk.”
Nelson touched on the emotions ‘DDD’ may be feeling coming into fight week.
He compared it to his 1999 clash with Carl Thompson where he picked up the world cruiserweight title.
He urged Dubois to call on past successes like dropping Usyk in the fifth round of their first fight wether it was low or not.
“It was my third attempt of a world title so my emotions were, well it was do or die.
“It was pure belief, pure self confidence.
“I think Daniel Dubois he needs to be in that position too.
“He needs to grasp at any straw of success that can come to him.
“He had Usyk down, so he’s got to think ‘right I had him down, if I’ve done him once I can do him again.’”
“So he’s got to draw on all the positives to actually block out getting stopped by Usyk.
“He’s got to think ‘no matter what this is what I can do’ he’s got to have 110% confidence.
“He’s gonna need it when you get to five or six rounds in the fight and you’re gassed a little bit, you’re still getting popped, missing shots. That’s when that need is going to come into play.”
Dubois looks to become the second ever British undisputed heavyweight world champion following in Lennox Lewis’ and becoming the first of the four belt era.
For Usyk, he aims to stamp even more legacy on his already incredible career.
