Fabio Wardley's First Defense of WBO Heavyweight Title Confirmed

The fight has been discussed for a few weeks and has been close to being finalized for the last few days. Both fighters are signed to Frank Warren's Queensberry Promotions, making the negotiation process easier than most.

Wardley won the belt with a stunning upset, albeit semi-controversial, of Joseph Parker in October 2025. Parker was then expected to be the next challenger for lineal champion Oleksandr Usyk, but decided to take the fight with Wardley instead of waiting for the injured Ukrainian.

Wardley had been winning throughout, but many fans complained about the 11th-round stoppage. Wardley publicly offered Parker a rematch, but those discussions dissipated when the 34-year-old's post-fight test sample came back positive for cocaine.

Dubois will fight for the first time since losing his rematch with Usyk in July 2025. He entered that fight as the IBF champion after knocking out Anthony Joshua 10 months before, giving Usyk undisputed status for the second time in as many years.

Fabio Wardley, Daniel Dubois adding to heavyweight title picture

With Wardley owning the only belt not in Usyk's possession, he was seemingly the perfect challenger for 'The Cat.' However, Usyk has shown no interest in the fight, seemingly intent on waiting for the result of Deontay Wilder vs. Derek Chisora.

The Wilder-Chisora matchup is being billed as a retirement fight for Chisora, win or lose. Wilder, however, believes he can re-enter the title picture with another knockout win, and Usyk's team has seemingly confirmed as much.

With the lineal champion on ice, Wardley and Dubois are set to engage in the first heavyweight world title fight since the latter's fight with Usyk in July 2025. Murat Gassiev knocked out Kubrat Pulev in December 2025 to win the WBA regular title, but that fight was essentially for an interim title, with Usyk reigning as the organization's "super" champion.

Even with a win, neither Wardley nor Dubois figures to enter the Usyk conversation. A victory would be more meaningful for Wardley, who can cement his championship status and erase the bad taste of his controversial stoppage of Parker with a win over another former champion.