By Ian S Palmer
Unbeaten heavyweight hopeful Daniel ‘Dynamite’ Dubois of England steps back into the ring this Saturday, December 21st when he takes on Kyotaro Fujimoto of Japan at the Copper Bay Arena in London. Dubois last fought in September when he stopped Ebenezer Tetteh in the second round for the vacant Commonwealth and WBO International Titles. Fujimoto’s last contest came in October when he stopped Suthat Kalalek in the sixth round. Saturday’s fight is for the vacant WBC Silver and the WBO International Heavyweight Belts and can be seen on ESPN+ in America and on BT Sport 1in the UK.
The 22-year-old Dubois is perfect so far at 13-0 with 12 Kos to his name. He also stopped Nathan Gorman in the fifth round in July for the vacant British Heavyweight Title so has racked up some belts since turning pro. Dubois hails from London and is basically being groomed as the next great British heavyweight. He reportedly dropped Anthony Joshua a couple of years ago during a sparring session and is often compared to him.
Those comparisons are easy to understand since Dubois is also a pretty big heavyweight as he stands 6-feet-5-inches tall with a 78-inch reach and has stopped 12 of his 13 opponents for a current 92.3 per cent knockout ratio. Like Joshua, Dubois also enjoyed a fine amateur career, losing just six of 75 bouts and winning gold medals at various tournaments. He didn’t fight in the Olympics though as he decided to turn pro instead.
Dubois has been brought along relatively cautiously since turning pro in April of 2017. He’s been pretty active but has just 39 rounds of experience under his belt due to his power. His opponents thus far have been Tetteh, Gorman, Marcus Kelly, Blaise Mendouo, David Howe, Mauricio Barragan, AJ Carter, Dorian Darch, DL Jones, Tom Little, Kevin Johnson, Razvan Cojanu and Richard Lartey with Johnson being the only man to last the distance.
After fighting a few recognizable names in Little, Gorman, Cojanu and Johnson, Dubois is back to taking on a relative unknown. He usually tips the scales between 230 and 240 lbs and his career has been based on his power. He can cause damage with either hand but isn’t really the most mobile heavyweight in the ring. He has decent hand speed though and is determined to make a name for himself in the division. It’s hard to say how good his chin is at this point since it hasn’t been tested.
As for Fujimoto of Osaka, he’s one of just a few Japanese heavyweights out there and that means he’s fought against limited opposition with all of his fights being held in his homeland. He has a decent record at 21-1 with 13 Kos but has faced the likes of Aaron Russell, Will Nasio, Randall Rayment, Adam Lovelock, Peter Okello and Michael O’Donnell. The only names you may recognize are likely Clarence Tillman, Chauncy Welliver and Nobuhiro Ishida.
The 33-year-old stopped Okello in the sixth round for the vacant Japanese Heavyweight Crown in 2013 and his only loss was a fifth-round stoppage at the hands of Solomon Haumono for the vacant OPBF Title a year earlier. He’s defended the Japanese title three times and has also won the WBO Asia Pacific, and OPBF Titles along the way. Fujimoto turned pro in 2011 and has boxed 140 rounds. He’s on the small size at just 6-feet-tall with a 73-inch reach. He gives up five inches in both height and reach to Dubois and has just above average power with a current knockout ratio of 59 per cent.
Prediction…
Fujimoto is 11 years older than Dubois, is fighting away from home for the first time, gives up five inches in height and reach, has a questionable chin and not as much power as Dubois. Therefore, everything’s stacked against him. He has a puncher’s chance here but that’s about it. I’m expecting Dubois to remain unbeaten on Saturday night.
