Perhaps the most distinctive aspect of the surge of controlled aggressiveness that concluded this heavyweight championship bout wasn’t the short right or the forceful left that brought Daniel Dubois down in the fifth round.
It was Oleksandr Usyk’s demeanor before the second of those shots. More of a grimace, perhaps, or a baring of the gumshield, as Dubois let his arms drop, giving Usyk time to compose himself, take aim, and launch a fully extended left hand to the side of the jaw that caused Dubois to crumple, his legs buckling underneath him as his father, Stan, tossed in the towel.
This was always a significant occasion for both athletes. For Dubois, it was an opportunity to accomplish something unprecedented, unifying the heavyweight belts on British soil before a crowd of 90,000. For Usyk, it was another chance to assert his own excellence, arriving with three belts and leaving with four, and at the same time, fulfilling his continuous secondary goal of representing Ukraine during a time of conflict.
Usyk is now the two-time undisputed heavyweight world champion. Most remarkably, he seems to discover new levels of determination, control, and finishing intensity with each of these fights. Perhaps the best aspect here was that Dubois was able to execute his strategy, to perform well, and to leave with his reputation, if not enhanced, then at least preserved, while also being convincingly outmatched. Facing Usyk at this level must feel akin to being physically and mentally overpowered simultaneously.
After the match, Usyk stated, “I want a rest.” However, he didn’t appear to need or even understand what rest was. He mentioned Tyson Fury, Derek Chisora, and Anthony Joshua. The challenge to face them all in one night, Oleks, with different styles and perhaps just a single restroom break.
This was another evening when the Riyadh season made its way to Wembley. Fight nights have a kind of festival atmosphere here, with the pitch transformed into a series of zones and stages, and the walkways crowded. The crowd was glamorous in the high-end seats. Jake Paul doing a peace sign could be seen here, and Jason Statham in sunglasses there. Closer to the ring was the familiar entourage of influencers, eccentric personalities, showmen, power brokers – the usual suspects.
As the main event approached, Wembley felt like a vast, humid tropical shed, seized by an ever-increasing field of event glitz and title flashes. It felt like a mix of Vegas and a mass celebratory Saturday night out – think “Sweet Caroline,” pints in the air – combined with legacies, induction into the hall of fame, war symbols, a $200m purse, and the Saudi project staging.
Michael Buffer made an appearance, dressed in a tuxedo, to perform his town crier role. Nadya Dorofeeva, akin to a Ukrainian Cheryl Cole, delivered a very moving champions’ anthem. “God Save the King” received a full sing-along reception. Wembley was magnificently alive, the light show was thrilling, and the crowd danced along to Chase & Status as Dubois made his entrance, donning a sharply cut black T-shirt that exposed the vast expanse of his neck and shoulders.
Dubois waved a fist and looked focused. However, there is always going to be a fundamental imbalance in the energy surrounding these two fighters. Usyk is a one-man cause; he embodies his nation’s defiance against the Russian invasion. He travels the world draped in his flag while the brutal invasion continues in real-time. It is a unique reality.
What does Dubois represent? How does he confront this singular instrument of war? What is his story? Even Tyson Fury managed to concoct a kind of base, a following, with his mental health activism, the deep, masculine, Iron John, and man-of-the-forest vibes. Dubois can’t be the villain; he is a pleasant fellow. He is, in effect, a one-man business, a sole trader. He represents hard work, clean living, and paternal control. He epitomizes the ability to do 5,000 press-ups.
Usyk emerged to boos from the home crowd and cheers from his Ukrainian supporters. He doesn’t really need music and storytelling. He just needs to exist amidst all the noise, a cold, calm center, with a beautifully contained sense of threat simply in how he moves.
Dubois started as he promised, taking the center of the ring, working behind his jab, and following up a bit more. It was an even beginning, and excitingly intense from both fighters. Dubois was working hard, making Usyk think. This is always a high-wire act. Usyk is learning you while you come forward, decoding your moves, building his patterns of counter-attacks.
Dubois brought challenger work rate and disruptive aggression. However, there was also a sense of a fighter expending his energy, of Usyk absorbing it, and moving into increasingly dangerous territory. By the fifth round, Dubois had slowed; he was being encircled clockwise and picked off with combinations.
Usyk may be a smaller heavyweight by modern super-sized standards, but this perceived disadvantage is his defining super-strength, providing him with speed, agility, and surprising power. Here, it was the viciousness of his finishing and the sense of genuine champion anger that truly stood out.
Dubois deserves credit for his willingness to face anyone in front of him. There is a kind of freedom in this. Defeat here will still leave him in the top tier, with other pathways back to this level. Meanwhile, Usyk remains in his distinct space, endlessly adaptable, physically undiminished, a man fighting with a kind of aura around him.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2025/jul/20/oleksandr-usyk-wraps-ukraines-flag-around-himself-and-his-fists-around-daniel-dubois
