Fabio Wardley Dropped Daniel Dubois Twice And Still Got Stopped — Rematch Is Next
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LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 25: Fabio Wardley looks on prior to the Heavyweight fight between Joseph Parker and Fabio Wardley on the "All or Nothing" Fight Night at The O2 Arena on October 25, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Richard Pelham/Getty Images)
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Getty ImagesDaniel Dubois‘ victory over Fabio Wardley in May was one of the five best heavyweight title fights I’ve ever seen. Both men showed tremendous heart, but Dubois’ 11th-round TKO victory proved he was the better man that night. Who will reign in the rematch with the WBO title on the line? I can’t wait to watch and find out. Let’s talk boxing.
Dubois vs. Wardley 2 Key Facts
DetailInfoDateSaturday, Oct. 17, 2026VenueThe O2, LondonStreamDAZNDoors4 p.m. local (11 a.m. ET)TitleWBO heavyweightRecordsDubois 23-3; Wardley 20-1-1First FightDubois TKO 11, May 9, 2026, Co-op Live, ManchesterPromoterQueensberry PromotionsDubois vs. Wardley 2 takes place Saturday, Oct. 17, at The O2 in London and streams on DAZN. Doors open at 4 p.m. local time, and Queensberry Promotions is staging the card.
Dubois defends the WBO heavyweight title for the first time. It’s the second world title of his career after his run as IBF champion.
The first fight took place May 9 at Co-op Live in Manchester, with Wardley defending the WBO title. Referee Howard Foster stopped it at the start of the 11th round because of Wardley’s facial damage, including heavy bleeding from the bridge of his nose and a right eye that was nearly swollen shut.
It was Wardley’s first professional loss, and he triggered the rematch clause soon after. Dubois left Manchester at 23-3, and Wardley dropped to 20-1-1.
Promoter Frank Warren summed up the first meeting as “two men baring their hearts and souls in the ring,” adding that they “gave everything.”
The rematch lands on a busy day for boxing. Sebastian Fundora defends his WBC super welterweight title against Ermal Hadribeaj later that night at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas, on DAZN and TNT.
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Dubois vs. Wardley 2 Card
BoutWeight ClassTitleRecordsDaniel Dubois vs. Fabio WardleyHeavyweightWBO23-3 vs. 20-1-1Bakhodir Jalolov vs. Solomon DacresHeavyweightNone17-0 vs. 10-1Louie O’Doherty vs. Michael Gomez Jr.LightweightBritish and Commonwealth12-0 vs. 23-2Tony Curtis vs. Kerim AgiusSuper flyweightPending confirmation14-1 vs. 6-1-2Undercard per FightMag and Boxing News. Additional bouts are expected.
If there is any criticism for this card it’s the lack of strength in chief support and the overall undercard. Louie O’Doherty and Michael Gomez Jr. are both solid fighters, but not quite on the level that fight fans would hope for when it comes to a card headlined by a heavyweight title rematch. As it is, if Dubois and Wardley put on another show like their first meeting, no one will even remember what happened in the fights leading up to their rematch.
If Wardley is going to have a different result, he’s going to need to diversify his offense. After the early rounds — and the knockdowns he suffered — Dubois seemed to have Wardley’s timing and found it easier to make him miss, and beat his opponent to the punch. Let’s hope we see something half as good as the first fight.
This article was originally published on Forbes.com