Daniel Dubois has been accused of quitting by a string of former world champions after taking a knee in the 10th round of his clash with Joy Joyce and watching the referee count him out.
The highly anticipated fight between the two unbeaten British heavyweights was an engaging one and a very even contest.
There was very little to choose between the two men as they reached the championship rounds in the scrap for the British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight titles.
However, Dubois was struggling with an eye injury as his left eye continued to swell, reaching the point where it appeared to be entirely swollen shut.
It only took a well-placed jab from Joyce, landing directly on the injured part of Dubois’ face. for Dynamite to step away from the action an take a knee.
His vision was clearly impaired, but he was well aware of the referee counting to 10 and allowed him to do so as the fight was waved off.
Former super bantamweight and featherweight world champion Carl Frampton was in no doubt that Dubois had quit the fight.
‘I think that we all like Dubois. He’s a likeable guy. But if it is someone we didn’t like, we would say he quit there,’ Frampton told BT Sport. ‘I think he quit there.
‘I have to be brutally honest here. Let’s call a spade a spade, he took a knee from a shot in the eye. His eye was a mess, his eye was closed. But I get dragged out of the ring, I wouldn’t take a knee.
‘I had Dubois a point up at the time of the stoppage, it was a close fight. You have to call it what it is; Dubois quit. But, he is a young kid and he can still come back.’
David Haye agreed with the Jackal, saying he would rather have seen Dubois fight to a conclusive finish.
‘I was very unhappy with the way that he took a knee,’ said the former heavyweight and cruiserweight champ. ‘He took a shot to the eye, which is obviously painful, and I never like seeing a fighter take a knee.
‘I’m sure Carl is the same – I would rather get knocked sparked out.’
Former British and European middleweight champion Matthew Macklin also stuck the boot in, suggesting that it is a worrying sign for the rest of Dubois’ career after he made the decision to take the knee.
Macklin tweeted: ‘Well done to Joe Joyce, just walked through anything Dubois hit him with. There’s no nice way to say this but Dubois quit. Got hit with a clean jab on a damaged eye and sat it out. He’s young but if you’ve got the quit in you then 🤷🏻♂️ it’s always gonna be a doubt over him.
‘I’d have had no problem with the corner pulling him out with the eye, on the basis of he’s 23, long career ahead etc… but for the fighter to step away, take a knee and sit it out… not good.’
Former light middleweight world champion Liam Smith replied to Macklin agreeing that the young heavyweight gave up in the bout.
‘Mate been saying the same thing,’ wrote Smith. ‘If you’re on one knee and watch a ref count to 10, you have quit. What about Joyce’s chin. Enjoyed that fight tho.’
Dubois said after the fight: ‘He caught me with a jab, his jab was accurate, I couldn’t see out of the eye. It just happens, man. I can’t explain it.
‘He just pinged it and I couldn’t see out of it, I was trying my best, it happens.’
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