Daniel Dubois defeated Jarrell Miller with a dramatic last-round stoppage and the British heavyweight feels he has now defied his critics; clash was on card ahead of Deontay Wilder vs Joseph Parker and Anthony Joshua vs Otto Wallin
By John Dennen, Sports journalist
Daniel Dubois bounced back from a losing world title bid against Oleksandr Usyk to record a late victory over brash American Jarrell Miller.
Dubois halted Miller with seconds left in their 10-round heavyweight contest in Ridyah, part of the blockbuster card where Deontay Wilder faces Joseph Parker and Anthony Joshua takes on Otto Wallin.
The Briton started brightly, landing jabs and opening up with an excellent one-two. He moved round Miller, who kept on trundling forward.
Dubois though started pushing Miller off, a tiring manoeuvre against an opponent who weighed over 300lbs.
He was getting himself drawn into the wrong fight with Miller, standing his ground and trading in a battle of strength.
The American came back into the contest, picking up rounds. Miller was trying to grind Dubois down and scraped hooks across the Briton’s chin, who had to show resilience to withstand them.
In his defeats to Joe Joyce and Oleksandr Usyk, Dubois’ heart and determination has been questioned, but he answered those doubts as he reasserted control and eventually took the fight away from Miller.
In the final round Miller tried to dredge up more energy and more pace in his output, but Dubois stood him up with a right uppercut.
The American’s momentum was almost grinding to a halt in front of Dubois, who teed off with combinations of punches.
A right uppercut knocked Miller back, and Dubois blasted him with a right cross as well.
He rocked Miller, driving him across the ring, hammering in huge shots and in the final seconds of the fight the referee stepped in to stop Miller.
“It really mattered and that was a big moment,” Dubois acknowledged afterwards. “It was a great fight and I’m glad I came through it. I showed my heart,” he continued. “I knew I had to get out there and work.
“This was an important win for me.”
He learned something about himself from it.
“I had to prove it to myself, I had to show myself that I was a real fighter,” Dubois added. “The confidence that I might have been missing before, I gained it tonight.”
Day of Reckoning featuring Anthony Joshua vs Otto Wallin is live on Saturday December 23. Sky customers can purchase on TNT Sports Box Office at www.sky.com/boxoffice/tnt-sports/day-of-reckoning
