Daniel Dubois sensationally dismantled fellow Briton
Anthony Joshua in five rounds to catapult himself into global sporting stardom
in front of 96,000 fans at Wembley Stadium.
The 27-year-old dropped Joshua multiple times to retain the
IBF heavyweight title and leave his domestic rival's career in ruins.
Londoner Dubois stopped Joshua, 34, with an incredible
counter right hook to secure the biggest win of his 24-fight career.
"Are you not entertained?" Dubois shouted
post-fight, to huge cheers in the packed-out stadium.
"I'm a gladiator. I am a warrior to the bitter end. I
want to get to the top level of this sport and reach my potential."
Joshua's bid to become a three-time champion and return to
the division's top table ended in the most dramatic and unexpected fashion.
AJ - who won his first world title more than eight years ago
- suffered a fourth loss in his 32nd bout, but hinted he will continue in the
sport and has a clause to trigger a rematch with Dubois.
"You know I'm ready to kick off in the ring but I'm
going to keep it respectful," he said.
"Before I came here, I always say to myself I'm a
fighter for life. You keep rolling the dice."
An ecstatic Dubois, meanwhile, enjoyed the crowning moment
which had eluded him after he was elevated to world champion when Oleksandr
Usyk vacated the belt.
Destructive Dubois starts and ends with a bang
Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher had already hyped up a lively
crowd with a musical interlude before the main event - and Dubois soon proved
to be a Rock 'N' Roll Star.
Despite being champion and going against tradition, he
walked first to the ring to jeers as fireworks shot up above the iconic Wembley
arches.
A sea of camera phones further illuminated the national
stadium when fan-favourite Joshua - his eyes firmly focused on the ring -
entered to a medley which started with the Godfather theme and ended with War
from Rocky IV.
Only four of their 49 combined wins had gone the distance,
and the expected early knockdown came in the first round from underdog Dubois
when he connected with a devastating overhand right in the closing seconds.
Joshua slumped to the canvas and had still not recovered in
the second. Dubois did not take a backwards step, stalking his opponent around
the ring and finding success with his rod-like jab.
Perhaps Joshua was still haunted by those sparring stories
from several years ago when Dubois reportedly rocked him.
The 2012 Olympic gold medallist was reeling in the third as
his pumped-up opponent whipped in a left hook and Joshua appeared to touch the
floor with his glove. It was not counted as a knockdown, but Dubois continued
the assault until Joshua was floored again.
He was dropped twice more in the third, the second ruled a
slip, but the writing was clearly on the wall. Unified champion Usyk and Tyson
Fury, who contest a rematch in December, watched on from ringside, scarcely
believing how the fight was unfolding.
The chants of "AJ, AJ" had quietened.
After a closer fourth round, Joshua, for the first time in
the fight, landed a clean punch in the fifth, only for it to spur Dubois into
action.
A counter right-hand, a punch that will live forever in the
memory of Dubois and all those in attendance, sent Joshua down for the final
time.
The former poster boy of British boxing was left scrambling
across the floor, desperately trying to get up, but unable to beat the count.
A 'redemption story' and new dawn for heavyweight
division
After one of British boxing's biggest shocks, Joshua's
future is under scrutiny, despite him suggesting he may continue in the sport.
The rebuild mission since losing a second consecutive fight
to Usyk in 2022 was going smoothly, fuelled by a desire to join legends such as
Muhammad Ali, Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis and Vitali Klitschko as a
three-time champion.
But Joshua came up against a fearless and younger fighter
determined to prove his worth on the world stage.
"I had a fast and sharp opponent, a lot of mistakes
from my end," he admitted afterwards.
The lure of the long-awaited and even longer-mooted super-fight
with Fury also suffered a major blow, even if the 'Gypsy King' loses to Usyk in
December's world-title rematch.
Dubois' future, in contrast, is gleaming brightly.
His father Stan was in his corner and just like he did
against Jarrell Miller and Filip Hrgovic, Dubois Sr willed his son into action
from the opening bell.
While he is no stranger to high-pressure situations and
large crowds, little could have prepared Dubois for such a momentous night on
the grandest stage - and four years on from a loss to another Briton in Joe
Joyce, when he suffered a fractured eye socket and was called a
"quitter" for taking a knee when failing to beat the count.
Yet the Greenwich fighter revelled in the spotlight again on
a night which has marked a new dawn for heavyweight boxing.
"I've been on a rollercoaster run, this is my time,
this is my redemption story," added Dubois.
