Wardley vs Dubois Weigh-In Results: “I’ll Put Him To Sleep Tomorrow”

Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois finally came face-to-face on the scales ahead of Saturday night’s WBO World Heavyweight title clash in Manchester, and neither man looked remotely interested in backing down.

Wardley tipped the scales at 242.2 lbs, while Dubois came in heavier at 251.7 lbs as the tension properly kicked into gear before the DAZN PPV main event at the Co-op Live Arena.

The atmosphere at the weigh-in felt less like polite fight-week theatre and more like two heavyweights trying not to start early.

 

Wardley Wants To Expose Dubois

Wardley made it clear he sees this as the moment everything finally comes together for him.

“This is not an easy night’s work, but I’m known for not picking easy fights,” Wardley said. “I feel I can expose him. This is the all coming together moment for me.”

He spent most of fight week questioning Dubois mentally rather than physically, repeatedly pointing toward moments against Oleksandr Usyk and Kevin Lerena where Dubois looked vulnerable under pressure.

Wardley argued Dubois can swing from looking unbeatable one night to uncertain the next.

He also brushed aside concerns about Dubois’ punching power, saying he has already shared the ring with fighters possessing better individual attributes in different areas.

Wardley pointed to Joseph Parker’s experience and Justis Huni’s speed and boxing ability as examples, insisting Dubois’ power alone is not enough to guarantee victory.

Even with all the back-and-forth, Wardley said he hopes Dubois turns up in peak condition because he wants a proper war for the fans.

Dubois In “Seek And Destroy” Mode

Dubois, meanwhile, kept things simple and cold throughout the week.

“I’m on a seek and destroy mission. I’m on it. Let’s see what he has. Talking’s done now. I’m ready for war.”

That was basically Dubois’ tone the entire week. Calm, blunt and clearly irritated by some of Wardley’s comments, including the “bin man” joke that Wardley later insisted was never meant disrespectfully.

Dubois acknowledged none of the talking matters once the bell rings and made it clear his focus is taking Wardley’s unbeaten record.

He closed the final exchange with a chilling prediction.

“I’ll put him to sleep tomorrow.”

The interesting thing here is that the crowd seems split emotionally, but not entirely on the outcome. Fan poll results shown during the event had 61% backing Wardley to win, while 87% expected the fight to end by knockout. That part feels hard to argue with.

Strong Words Across The Undercard

Jack Rafferty weighed 146.9 lbs for his welterweight clash with Ekow Essuman, who came in at 146.7 lbs.

Essuman described the fight as “pressure versus pressure” but promised “punch perfect precision” on fight night.

Rafferty sounded confident the fans were in for something special.

“I’m gonna give the fans what they came to see. This is gonna be fight of the night.”

David Morrell came in at 176.1 lbs for his light heavyweight meeting with Zak Chelli, who weighed 177.1 lbs.

Liam Cameron hit 174.4 lbs, while Bradley Rea weighed 173.1 lbs ahead of their domestic clash.

Rea sounded fired up after making weight.

“All the hard work’s done now and this is the fun part. I’m looking to knock him out.”

Cameron brushed off the hometown support for Rea and promised a strong performance of his own.

Khaleel Majid and Gavin Gwynne both hit identical weights of 139.7 lbs for their super lightweight contest.

Heavyweight contender Bakhodir Jalolov came in at 254.9 lbs ahead of his bout with Agron Smakici, who weighed 241 lbs.

Frank Warren Calls Main Event A “Pick’em”

Promoter Frank Warren said he was looking forward to every fight on the card and described several of the matchups — including the main event — as genuine pick’em fights.

That probably sums up Wardley vs Dubois perfectly.

One man believes he can mentally break the other. The other looks like he wants to walk through fire and end things violently.

Either way, Manchester looks ready for a heavyweight shootout.

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