I’M LIKE TYSON
Dubois: Opponents fear me like they feared Iron Mike, and so they should
IN his prime Mike Tyson would instil so much fear into opponents that they would be beaten before stepping into the ring.
Such was his ferocity that he became heavyweight champion of the world at just 20. There was no glitz or glamour. He was known for his no-nonsense ring walks, in just black trunks and boots and with no music to announce his arrival.
While heavyweight champ Anthony Joshua is a scary prospect in the ring, when he walks out there are smiles and fist-bumps for fans. But today a man cut from the same cloth as Tyson takes on his 14th opponent, looking for a 13th knockout.
Daniel Dubois is 6ft 5in to Tyson’s 5ft 10in but could be the closest thing to Iron Mike that the heavyweight scene has ever witnessed. “I know it can happen that people fear me like they feared Tyson,” said the 22-year-old ahead of his contest with Japan’s Kyotaro Fujimoto. “If you keep putting the message out with your style and your approach it puts fear in the other competitors.
“Tyson was someone who I looked up to. As a young kid I tried to emulate some of the things he did in and out of the ring. I feel that is part of my character and part of my fighting style.”
Dubois (below, with Mirror sports reporter Chris McKenna) has already won the British and Commonwealth titles and promoter Frank Warren believes he has the future world heavyweight king in his stable.
“When I was a kid I would watch videos of different fighters and then I would go to the gym and try to be Tyson for the day,” says Dubois.
“I’d see if that worked and, if it didn’t, I’d go back to being Roy Jones or someone like that.
I was constantly looking at the legends and challenging myself to be up to their standards.”
Unlike Tyson, a vicious man both inside and outside of the ring, Dubois is approachable and often smiling – but when it comes to fight time he slips into a dark mood.
Trainer Martin Bowers describes him as ‘Terminator’ when he gets to the arena on fight night and Dubois said: “I’m fearless. As a fighter I need that, it’s part of my armour, it’s part of my protection. When you go into battle you can’t have second thoughts about what you’re going to do.”
The plan for Dubois over the next 12 months is to position himself for a mega-fight in 2021 against Joshua, Deontay Wilder or Tyson Fury for a crack at the world title. “To fight Joshua or Fury at Wembley would be the pinnacle,” he said. “It would be a huge moment in the world of sport. To get to that level would be an achievement and to win at that level would be amazing.
“I’m never going to give up until I get there.”