Right then. Two days on from Daniel Dubois climbing off the deck twice and stopping Fabio Wardley in the eleventh at Co-op Live, the next-fight map is already on the board at Queensberry HQ. Two clear paths, two very different stories.
The Wardley Rematch — The Obvious One
Wardley has a rematch clause. Frank Warren said on Saturday night that “the dust needs to settle,” but every promoter in the country knows what a Dubois-Wardley sequel would do. The first fight was British Fight of the Year already. Two early knockdowns, the rabbit-shot complaint from the Wardley camp, the back-and-forth of rounds four to ten — you do that fight again at Wembley in November and you sell 80,000 tickets without breaking a sweat.
Let’s not beat around the bush — the rematch is the money fight, the closure fight, and the fight the British public want. A right hand from Wardley still does what it did in round one. Dubois’ team know that.
The Kabayel Option — The Cleaner One
And then there’s Agit Kabayel. The WBC interim champion was sat ringside on Saturday, eyes on the prize, and within twelve hours of the stoppage he was on social media reminding everyone that he’s the highest-ranked man at heavyweight who isn’t already booked.
Kabayel’s situation: the WBC have ordered Usyk to face him after Verhoeven on May 23. Most insiders think Usyk vacates rather than fight Kabayel inside six months. If that happens, Kabayel jumps to full WBC champion — and a Dubois versus Kabayel unification becomes a genuine WBC-versus-WBO fight. That’s a proper world title fight on paper.
Why The Rematch Wins
Make no mistake — Kabayel is dangerous. He’s a body-puncher, he doesn’t mind getting hit, and he gets stronger as fights go on. He’s the kind of opponent Dubois would not handle the way he handled Wardley.
But the rematch is the fight Dubois’ team should take. Three reasons.
One: Wardley dropped him twice. There is unfinished business in the head, and a clean rematch win — with Dubois starting properly, not coming off the canvas — is what makes the second reign feel real.
Two: Usyk versus Verhoeven is ten days away. We don’t yet know what state the WBC belt is in by June. Booking Kabayel in May without knowing whether it’s a title or an eliminator is bad business.
Three: a Wardley rematch in November buys time. Dubois camp gets paid twice, the heavyweight landscape settles, and the Kabayel-or-Itauma-or-Usyk fight crystallises into a single career-defining unification in spring 2027.
What Warren Has Said
Frank Warren on Sunday: “Let the dust settle. There’s a lot of things happening in the heavyweight division.” That’s a promoter buying himself ten days to watch Giza play out. If Usyk beats Verhoeven and then walks rather than fight Kabayel, the WBC strap goes into a tournament — and Warren will want Dubois in that tournament holding the WBO, not stuck in a fixed Kabayel fight.
Luke’s Read
Take the rematch. Wembley, November, the right hand from round one of the first fight gets cracked over an answer in round one of the second. Dubois stops Wardley inside seven this time, properly, no canvas visits, and walks into spring 2027 as the unified champion who can pick from Kabayel, Itauma, or whoever’s left after Giza.
If you know, you know — the rematch is the fight that finishes the chapter. The unification is the fight that opens the next one. Get them in the right order and Dubois ends 2027 as the biggest heavyweight in the world.