Footage has emerged of Daniel Dubois’ ‘insane’ 70-person house party thrown in the hours before his defeat by Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday.
Other boxers have blasted the bash – which was reportedly laid on by his father for people Dubois did not know – as a ‘disruptive’ interference with his day.
As it happened, Dubois was knocked out by Usyk in the fifth round at Wembley as he lost out on the chance to become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.
Videos from the party show Dubois smiling and posing for photos with attendees, with dozens of people packed into the house and overflowing onto the property’s driveway.
The Times reported that Dubois’ father, Stanley, grew ‘agitated’ that his son was apparently set to bank £150million, when the actual fee was around £10m, and threw a lavish occasion at their family mansion in Essex.
Later, Stanley requested extra vehicles to take the entourage to Wembley, with only one of the vehicles accredited to park, meaning Daniel had to walk to the stadium on foot. Stanley also reportedly threatened that his son would not go ahead with the fight if his expanded posse was not allowed in.
On talkSPORT, other boxers could scarcely believe what they were hearing as Simon Jordan related what had happened to them.
‘That is insanely disruptive,’ said Joseph Parker. ‘I’m very surprised, I’m shocked. That many people over? You’re preparing for a massive fight.
‘You need rest, you need to chill, you need to get in the zone,’ and he’s got this big party happening.
Lawrence Okolie concurred: ‘The problem is, it’s coming from someone that he looks (to) out of the ring. It’s coming from his dad.
‘I’ve trained with him, his dad’s a huge part of his life, so that is obviously going to be disruptive.’
Spencer Oliver added: ‘We’re talking about fighters being regimental and superstitious on the day, some fighters want to wear a ring in their laces and all that stuff.
‘It all has to be on point for you to go in there, any little thing can throw you off track.’
Dynamite was always going to be up against it taking on Usyk, who has since been crowned one of the best three heavyweights ever by Mail Sport’s Jeff Powell.
The British fighter faced the toughest test of his career in the national stadium, suffering defeat for just the third time as a professional – with one of the other two also coming against the Ukrainian, who is 11 years his senior.
He was given a slight chance of victory by some punters on the back of his demolition of Anthony Joshua last autumn, but many had backed Usyk to get the job done once again and unify the heavyweight division for a second time.
Dubois needed his preparation to be perfect, and, according to The Times, it wasn’t – with the 27-year-old thought to have only arrived at Wembley less than 90 minutes before he was set to walk to the ring.
It is thought he arrived at around 8:20pm, with events surrounding his father thought to have triggered the chaotic build-up.
He is said to have even left the house party at one stage to go for a drive, perhaps in a bid to clear his head.
Dubois’ journey to the stadium was reportedly delayed after Stanley requested extra vehicles to take the entourage to the venue, and Dubois was taken to the venue by Stanley, with only one of the vehicles accredited.
That resulted in Dubois walking to the stadium on foot, with his dad having parked in the car park.
A video clip is reported to show Stanley heavily involved in the entrance to the stadium, with the former champion’s father reportedly threatening that Dubois would not proceed if his entourage was not allowed in.
Stanley was in Dubois’ corner during the fight. He threw in the towel when his son was knocked down by Usyk for a second time – with the bout coming to an end in the fifth round.
Stanley, whose real name is Dave, homeschooled Dubois as a child and has played a huge part in his rise to the top of boxing.
Speaking in a lengthy interview with The Times, Daniel, alongside his Stanley, revealed the brutal yet enjoyable training program he had been put on as a child which included laps around their council estate and never ending push-ups which left visible scars.
The workouts began when he was about five years old with his father running a disciplined ship.
‘My dad put a lot of work into me, so I got the full brunt of the force. He’s not crazy strict, he’s just disciplined,’ he said.
Although the family was living in a council estate during Dubois’ upbringing, it didn’t stop Stanley from implementing a tough training regime.
The dad of 11, including Caroline Dubois – the interim WBC women’s lightweight champion – managed to get very inventive when it came to ensuring his son reached his peak both mentally and physically.
Stanley also revealed that sometimes he wouldn’t feed Dubois until he had completed his workout.
