LONDON: Heavyweight challenger Fabio Wardley predicted he would take his revenge in knockout fashion after weighing in heavier than ever for a title rematch with WBO world champion Daniel Dubois in Saturday’s all-British bout at London’s O2 Arena.
Dubois, 29, was a career-heaviest 253.9 pounds (115kg) with Wardley, 31, tipping the scales at 248.3 (112kg).
The previous fight in Manchester between the two last May ended at the start of the 11th round when the referee stepped in. Wardley, making his first defense, was bleeding heavily from the bridge of his nose and with his right eye almost closed.
Dubois rose twice from the canvas in that fight, including being dropped by a right hook in the first 10 seconds, to become heavyweight world champion for the second time in his career.
“It’s seek and destroy now. I draw confidence from the successes I had in the first fight — getting knockdowns in the first and third,” said Wardley at Friday’s weigh-in at Spitalfields Market, predicting “revenge, Fabio Wardley, knockout win.”
Dubois said he knew what to expect and was “ready to go to war,” adding: “I need to get through this to get to bigger things.”
The champion has a record of 23 wins with three losses from 26 fights while Wardley is 20-1-1.