Result: Daniel Dubois def. Fabio Wardley via 11th-round TKO

Updated 15 May, 17:00 GMT

Wardley Triggers Dubois Rematch Clause

Fabio Wardley has now triggered his rematch clause, meaning Daniel Dubois is expected to face him again in an immediate return bout for the WBO heavyweight title.

It is a brave call from Wardley, but not a surprising one. He dropped Dubois twice, hurt him early and will know there were moments in Manchester where the fight looked like it was there to be won. The problem is that Dubois also answered a lot of questions. He got up, stayed composed, broke Wardley down and finished the fight like the fresher, sharper and more seasoned heavyweight.

The rematch now changes the picture at the top of the division. Moses Itauma had been waiting in the background as a looming WBO mandatory after his March knockout of Jermaine Franklin, but Wardley activating the clause puts Dubois v Wardley 2 firmly into the frame.

A third Usyk fight still makes little sense right now. Oleksandr Usyk has already beaten Dubois twice and is tied up with WBC mandatory Agit Kabayel, while Dubois has a more obvious domestic storyline sitting directly in front of him.

Wardley may believe he only needs to tidy up the mistakes, pace himself better and avoid fading late. Dubois, meanwhile, will feel he has already solved the problem once. That is what makes the rematch interesting. The first fight gave Wardley hope, but it gave Dubois the title.

Wardley v Dubois Fight Recap

Daniel Dubois stopped Fabio Wardley in the 11th round at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester on Saturday night, ripping the WBO heavyweight title from the Ipswich man and becoming a two-time world champion.

It was chaos from the opening bell. Dubois hit the canvas in Round 1 and again in Round 3, with Wardley’s overhand right looking, briefly, like it might blow the whole fight apart before Dubois had even settled. For a few minutes, it felt like Wardley had dragged Dubois into exactly the kind of night he wanted.

But Dubois did not unravel. After taking a double slap in the face from head coach Don Charles in the corner, he steadied himself, found his jab and slowly began to turn the fight on its head. The same stiff left hand that broke Anthony Joshua in 2024 started landing again, and once Dubois got Wardley backing up, the momentum only moved one way.

Referee Howard Foster waved it off in the 11th round with Wardley hurt, exhausted and turning away from the action. Wardley never went down, which says plenty about his toughness, but by the end he was taking too much clean punishment for the fight to continue.

Wardley v Dubois Punch Stats

Dubois landed 179 of 391 total punches at 45.8%, compared with Wardley’s 97 of 358 at 27.1%.

The biggest difference came in power punches. Dubois landed 87 of 180, more than double Wardley’s 40 of 149, and that gap told the story of the second half of the fight. Wardley had the early drama, but Dubois built the damage round by round.

Wardley showed huge heart and somehow stayed on his feet, but Dubois’ sustained pressure, cleaner work and heavier late-round output forced the referee to step in.