Usyk gives up the IBF Heavyweight Title, paving the way for a Joshua vs. Dubois match at Wembley

Oleksandr Usyk’s vacant heavyweight title will be contested at Wembley by British fighter Daniel Dubois and two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua.

Oleksandr Usyk, a heavyweight boxer from Ukraine, declared on Instagram on Tuesday that he was giving up the International Boxing Federation (IBF) heavyweight title. Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois will now square off at London’s Wembley Stadium on September 21.

The president of the IBF, Daryl Peoples, acknowledged that Dubois is the new heavyweight champion but refuted rumors that he had been crowned the winner, saying that no formal decision had been made.

The fight between Joshua and Dubois, which will mark the first Riyadh Season event in the UK, will be formally announced at a press conference on Wednesday. The first tournament outside of Saudi Arabia is Terence Crawford vs. Israil Madrimov in Los Angeles on August 3.

Undisputed heavyweight champion Usyk of Ukraine won last month’s fight against Tyson Fury in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, via split decision.

Thus, just the WBC, WBA, and WBO belts—the last three—will be up for grabs when Usyk and Fury rematch on December 21 in Riyadh. Joshua and Dubois will compete for the IBF title.

Before Usyk’s fight with Fury, it was decided that the winner would either have to face the mandatory challenger next or lose the title. Usyk’s mandatory IBF title defense was long overdue. It was expected that Usyk will make a choice on Tuesday given the existing two-fight pact.

Earlier this month in Riyadh, Dubois defeated the top contender, Filip Hrgovic, via eighth-round TKO to win the IBF interim title.

Usyk spoke to Anthony and Daniel in his video on Tuesday, expressing how much the IBF championship meant to them and referring to his decision to give it up as “my present to you on September 21.”

Usyk has already defeated both Joshua and Dubois, and his record is 22 victories, 0 losses, and 14 knockouts. He defeated Joshua by unanimous decision in 2021 and 2022 before stopping Dubois in the eighth round of their August encounter.

Joshua, who has a record of 28 victories, 3 defeats, and 25 knockouts, and Dubois, who are both from England, will now square off at Wembley Stadium, which can hold over 90,000 spectators and has hosted Joshua twice already.

ESPN has Joshua, 34, ranked third in the heavyweight class, and he is a former two-time heavyweight champion. He most recently defeated former UFC champion Francis Ngannou via dramatic second-round knockout in March.

Joe Joyce stopped Dubois in the tenth round in his 2020 professional fight.