Boxing
'I find it strange' – Dubois demeanour baffles Wardley
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Fabio Wardley is never quite sure which version of Daniel Dubois will speak to him — but he is certain it will be his hand raised at the end of their rematch.
The build up to their first contest in May was punctuated by bad blood, trash talk and Dubois snubbing a fist bump.
After flooring his opponent in the first 10 seconds on fight night, Wardley followed up his flying start by dropping him again in the third round.
Relive the heavyweight epic between Wardley and Dubois
With a return bout set for October 17 at London’s O2 Arena, Wardley is determined to have the final say by reclaiming his crown with an explosive knockout.
And while he is not expecting a repeat of the intense verbal sparring, he knows the Londoner is likely to be a prickly character whenever they come face to face.
“I find it strange,” Wardley told DAZN News during an exclusive interview. “But like I say, when cameras aren't around we're actually quite normal, cordial.
"Then it seems as soon as there's a camera, he flicks and a different character seems to appear. Sometimes you don't know where you stand with him.
"Some people just feel differently when there's a camera in your face — it takes some getting used to.
“And again, I think we're all quite aware he's not the most natural, he doesn't like speaking to the cameras.
“I think he'd much rather just be at home in the gym cracking on rather than doing all this stuff, but it's part of the job.”
After Dubois got in his face when their rematch was announced following Filip Hrgovic’s win over Moses Itauma last weekend, Wardley was on the receiving end of some expletives when they met again at Wednesday’s launch press conference.
The 31-year-old wasn't short of things to say in reply, but he remained cool, calm and collected. Although that may change come fight week, for now the Ipswich heavy hitter has no intention of poking the bear.
He added: “Clearly, he's building himself up. I can almost understand that feeling, that sentiment of having all the concern or the worry of like, 'Oh no, I've got to go back into a 12-round war with someone who won't go away, I was landing punches on, and they weren't going down'.
“He's saying what he's got to say, and he's doing what he's got to do, to build himself up to come out on the night. It really doesn't have much bearing for me.”
When all is said and done, Wardley clearly intends to let his fists do the talking.
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Britian's Conor Benn looks to become a world champion for the first time against US superstar Ryan Garcia on Saturday, September 12.
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