Joe Joyce was nearly a 3-1 underdog coming into his heavyweight tilt on Saturday against Daniel Dubois at the Church House in London, England. Many boxing pundits felt that since Dubois was the younger fighter, the heavier puncher, and had taken on better quality of opposition that Joyce didn't have much of a chance to earn the victory.
But that is the reason why they fight as Joyce outboxed Dubois from the outset with a powerful jab, which ultimately put his opponent away to win by knockout at the 0:36 mark of the tenth round to capture the British, Commonwealth, and European heavyweight titles.
If you expected Dubois and Joyce to come out firing bombs and end the fight in 30 seconds, think again. Joyce set the tone of how things would go by keeping Dubois at range with a steady diet of jabs. Joyce showed laser-like accuracy to the point Dubois had swelling under his eye by the end of the round.
Before the second round began, Dubois' corner told him to get going and get on the inside. He heeded their advice. Dubois started with the jab, which then allowed him to land overhand rights and left hooks upstairs. Joyce held up well to the punches, but he started retreating as the round drew closer to an end.
The tide turned for the 35-year-old Joyce in the fourth round. After being forced away from the jab by Dubois, Joyce went back to it and ended up being able to open a cut under Dubois' eye.
While Dubois was ramping up the power shots in the fifth and sixth rounds, Joyce walked through them and continued to pump the jab at Dubois' left eye. The strategy worked as his eye was nearly swollen shut by the start of the seventh round.
From that point forward, it was Joyce's fight to lose. Dubois' eye was target practice for Joyce, who just continued to blast him with one stiff jab after another. But Dubois didn't let the setback deter him. He would keep throwing caution to the wind and responding to Joyce with everything he had in the gas tank, but the 2016 Olympic gold medalist walked through every bomb Dubois attempted.
The eye of Dubois was completely swollen shut by the 10th round. Joyce (13-0, 12 KOs) took advantage immediately and landed a hard stiff jab that had Dubois grabbing the left eye immediately. Dubois took a moment and then went to a knee as the referee made the count to ten. It was a stunning finish to give Joyce the biggest win of his career and put himself in position for a marquee fight in 2021.
For Dubois (15-1, 14 KOs), it is the first setback of his professional career.