Wardley says he has 'zero excuses' as the Dubois rematch is set for the O2

Fabio Wardley says there are "zero excuses" heading into his rematch with WBO heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois on 17 October, as he looks to write a new chapter in his story, BBC Sport's Bobbie Jackson reports.

Wardley, 31, dropped fellow Briton Dubois twice when the pair met in May but was stopped in round 11 and lost his world title. The Ipswich fighter immediately triggered his rematch clause and will look to avenge the only defeat of his career at London's O2 Arena.

What Wardley said at the launch

"I have zero excuses for the loss on the night and zero excuses going into the rematch," Wardley said at Wednesday's launch news conference. "It's just another chapter in the story that is my career. By no means did I expect to get through boxing unscathed — not many do. Even Daniel has proven you can take a loss and come back, he's a two-time heavyweight champion."

Dubois, 28, was coming off the third defeat of his 26-fight career when he twice climbed off the canvas to overcome Wardley. The former IBF champion, who held that belt in 2024, has vowed to build momentum with another win as he looks to unify the division in 2027. "I was coming off a defeat so I was a bit nervous. It's a fresh start for me," he said. "I want to be the last man standing and be up there with the greats."

'Can we be cool?'

October's rematch was announced on Saturday at the O2, when the pair faced off in the ring moments before Moses Itauma's IBF title bid ended in defeat by Filip Hrgovic — a fight preceded by a chaotic weigh-in in which Itauma shoved Hrgovic off the stage.

Both men said on Wednesday they had a new-found respect for each other after 11 gruelling rounds. There was still a tense moment at the news conference, though, when Wardley asked "can we be cool?" and Dubois replied "after the fight, man". A confused-looking Wardley said: "Do you not like me? I thought after the fight we were all right?" It is not the first friction between them: Dubois refused Wardley's fist bump in the build-up to their first meeting. Elsewhere in the division, JOE has covered Tyson Fury throwing the Anthony Joshua fight into doubt.