LONDON – It took Daniel Dubois less than five minutes to silence five months of talk and deliver a chilling reminder of his destructive power.
In doing so, he left Fabio Wardley facing the kind of questions no fighter wants to answer.
There was to be no repeat of their bloody May epic, no momentum shifts and back-and-forth drama, just a highlight real climax that Dubois can add to his ruthless catalogue.
If anything at the start, Fabio looked too relaxed. It was as if he was lying to himself that he could be cool and calm despite what had been forecast to come his way.
That was a red flag, and it turned out to be red rag to a bull because Dubois was happy to attack Wardley’s nonchalance and pulverised him with a right hand in the first exchange of the fight.
Wardley dropped a knee to the canvas and referee Steve Gray picked up the count.
Sitting next to me for the main event, GB amateur star Damar Thomas had said the man who landed first would win, and he leaned over and said he was right.
“I can see it going early,” he said of the main event. Asked for specifics, he said: “50-50, I’ve got to, whoever lands first.”
Wardley’s legs were rubbery when he stood up.
“I told you,” Thomas said.
“His legs have gone,” I replied.
Wardley took a few more thudding shots and had to hold.
Chants of, ‘Ohhh, Fabio Wardley’ rang through the O2 but they sounded sympathetic. The conclusion already looked foregone, even more so when Dubois responded to the noisy crescendo and as the WBO heavyweight champion fired forwards, Wardley’s coach Ben Davison nervously climbed the ring steps, towel in hand, preparing to save his man.
One clean shot would have confirmed Davison’s decision but the bell sounded and Wardley returned groggily to his corner.
