Oleksandr Usyk offers brief response to Daniel Dubois illness and Parker vs Bakole fight

Oleksandr Usyk seemingly does not care what happens between Joseph Parker and Martin Bakole this weekend, as he eyes a rematch with Daniel Dubois.

Dubois was due to defend the IBF heavyweight title against Parker on Saturday, but the champion was pulled from the fight on two days’ notice due to illness. That led Bakole to step in, as the “most-avoided” heavyweight fights Parker in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The winner of Dubois vs Parker was expected to fight unified champion Usyk next, with Dubois making clear his desire to exact revenge on the Ukrainian. Usyk stopped Dubois in 2023 after the Briton dropped the unbeaten southpaw with a low blow, which many believed was a legal body shot.

Dubois has since been on a hot streak, stopping Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic and Anthony Joshua, while Parker is in similarly strong form, holding five straight wins including victories over Zhilei Zhang and Deontay Wilder.

Dubois’s absence from Saturday’s event, which will be headlined by Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2, complicates the heavyweight title picture, especially with the WBO saying it will put an interim belt on the line in Parker’s clash with Bakole. Usyk, holding the regular WBO belt, may therefore be ordered to fight Saturday’s winner next.

Asked for a prediction on Parker vs Bakole, Usyk told DAZN on Friday: “I don’t know, we’ll see. I want to fight next with... Dubois. Yeah, why not?”

After Usyk beat Tyson Fury on points in December – replicating his May result against the “Gypsy King” – Dubois entered the ring to confront the Ukrainian, 38. That was despite the 27-year-old already having a fight booked with Parker, 33.

At a press conference on Thursday, New Zealand’s Parker said he would stay on Saturday’s card, regardless of who he would fight. It was later announced that Congolese boxer Bakole, 31, would step in.