LONDON — Daniel Dubois defends his WBO heavyweight title against Fabio Wardley in a rematch at London's O2 Arena on Saturday, October 17, five months after their dramatic first meeting in Manchester. Londoner Dubois, 29, climbed off the canvas twice to stop Ipswich's Wardley, 31, in the 11th round at Manchester's Co-op Live Arena to become a two-time world champion, and Wardley quickly triggered his rematch clause after suffering the first defeat of his professional career. Ringwalks are expected after 22:30 BST.
The rematch pits two of Britain's heaviest punchers against each other. Dubois is 23-3 with 22 knockouts in 26 fights and has gone the distance just once, while Wardley is 20-1-1 with 19 knockouts, meaning 41 of their combined 43 victories have come inside the distance. Dubois holds the experience edge at the highest level, having twice fought Oleksandr Usyk and shared the ring with Anthony Joshua, Filip Hrgovic and Joe Joyce, while Wardley came through the unlicensed white-collar scene after working in recruitment at age 19 and built his rise with stoppage wins over Justis Huni and former world champion Joseph Parker.
The first fight delivered knockdowns, momentum shifts and a remarkable comeback, but also concern as Wardley fought on with a badly damaged nose and one eye swollen shut while doctors checked him twice at ringside. Dubois landed 179 punches to Wardley's 97, including 87 power punches to 40, before forcing the 11th-round stoppage. Former world champion Carl Frampton described Wardley as the "bravest man he'd ever seen," but said the referee or his corner should have intervened before the 10th, while Darren Barker called for the fight to be stopped to protect Wardley.
Dubois' WBO title is at stake over 12 three-minute rounds in the first defense of his second reign as world champion after previously holding the IBF title before losing his rematch with Usyk in July 2025. Wardley had been elevated from interim champion before losing the belt to Dubois in his first defense. The WBO belt is one of four major heavyweight titles now held by four different fighters, with Dubois holding the WBO, Agit Kabayel as WBC champion, Filip Hrgovic holding the IBF title and Murat Gassiev recognized by the WBA as its world champion. The undercard features Louie O'Doherty vs. Michael Gomez Jr. for the British and Commonwealth lightweight title, plus Bakhodir Jalolov vs. Solomon Dacres, Tony Curtis vs. Kerim Agius, Leighton Birchall vs. Luis Vara Carrillo and five additional bouts.
BBC Sport will carry live text commentary from 21:00 BST on the website and app, with radio commentary from London at 21:00 on 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds and coverage on BBC Radio 5 Live for the main event at 22:00. Stacey Copeland will present, with lead commentator Ronald McIntosh alongside Steve Bunce and former super-middleweight world champion Richie Woodhall, plus a live watch-along on BBC iPlayer, the BBC Sport website and app, and BBC Sport YouTube and TikTok channels with Nick Peet, British heavyweight champion Richard Riakporhe and BBC Sounds' Punch Perfect hosts Emily Smith and Liam Gough. The winner could enter 2027 with lucrative options as Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua are set to finally meet at Cardiff's Principality Stadium in December in a bout reportedly earmarked for the WBA 'super' heavyweight title, a move Gassiev's team has objected to while he remains listed as WBA world champion.