Daniel Dubois-Anthony Joshua heavyweight title bout has the potential to be among the best of this generation

On Nov. 13, 1992, an up-and-coming young heavyweight with extraordinary promise made the leap to the next level when he challenged a classy and respected veteran for the undisputed heavyweight championship in Las Vegas. Riddick Bowe and Evander Holyfield put on one of the great title fights in heavyweight history that night at the Thomas & Mack Center in a mind-blowing slugfest that featured everything one could want in a fight.

Clearly, the stakes were high as they were battling for the most coveted prize in boxing. On display was a combination of elite boxing skill, pulverizing punching power and heart, courage and determination to the next level.

As I think about Saturday's IBF heavyweight title fight at Wembley Stadium in London between champion Daniel Dubois and former champion Anthony Joshua, it was hard not to conjure up memories of Bowe-Holyfield I. That fight remains one of the standards for heavyweight championship matches in my lifetime, along with Muhammad Ali-Joe Frazier I and III, Larry Holmes_Ken Norton and Tyson Fury-Deontay Wilder III.

Now, we have to be careful with the Bowe-Holyfield comparisons because Dubois certainly isn't as established now as either Bowe or Holyfield was then. Bowe was an Olympic silver medalist who was as gifted as any big man in the sport's history. Holyfield's legend had long since been built.

Dubois has been a promising prospect for years, and through the quirks of the sanctioning body system, got a heavyweight title shot when the belt was stripped from undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk.

But Dubois is showing signs of fulfilling his immense potential and becoming a major factor. He's a significant underdog in his first title defense, but give him credit for facing someone like Joshua the first time out.

There may be as many as 96,000 in attendance at Wembley for the All-British showdown, and the pressure on both men is enormous.

Their styles are such, though, that it might end before fans are out of the beer lines and settled into their seats.

"It’s going to be an all-action fight," said Hall of Famer Frank Warren of Queensberry Promotions, Dubois' promoter. "They’re both massive punchers, it won’t go the distance but it’s going to be really exciting while it lasts. This is huge. [The attendance will be about] 96,000 people. That’s all you need to know. It’s the biggest attendance ever in Europe for a fight. That says it all. That’s how it should be as well."

The bout will be Dubois' third heavyweight title fight. He was stopped by Usyk by ninth-round KO on Aug. 26, 2023 in an IBF-WBO title bout. He won the IBF belt by stopped Filip Hrgovic on cuts after eight rounds on June 1 in arguably the best performance of his career, and now he'll defend against Joshua.

Dubois, whose only other loss was by KO to Joe Joyce in 2020, seems relaxed and prepared for the massive challenge he'll face.

"You guys are going to see that this is my time," Dubois said. "I'm the man. I need to go out there and legitimize it. I'm the champ."

Joshua has been in this massive moments with regularity, ever since he won the super heavyweight gold medal at home in England in the 2012 Olympic Games in London. He's been a massive star ever since, and has been in severely hugely significant bouts.

But Joshua is not only an elite fighter, but he's like that as a person, as well. He said he has time for his fans because he remembers where he came from. He had humble beginnings and wasn't wearing bespoke suits and hanging with the high society crowd before he won the title.

The enormity of the moment and how far he has come isn't lost on him. The crowd adored him and treated him like a God.

"Nah, not at all because I’ll never forget," Joshua said of the crowd going crazy for him. "I started boxing late, so I used to, well I still do, look up to a lot of people. I can put myself on the other side of the fence. I’ve been on the other side of the fence. I haven’t always been on the red carpet. I always understand now I’m on the red carpet, how to treat people. I’m never going to turn my nose up at people. That’s just not my style."

In the ring, it's different. Both men have KO power in each hand and will be looking to take the other's head off with every punch.

Joshua promoter Eddie Hearn has been through a lot with him over the years and isn't looking past Dubois. But he knows why such an enormous crowd is expected on Saturday. It's because it's going to be bombs away from the first bell.

"We’ve had our highs and our lows, and to see him make history as a three-time heavyweight champion would be an incredible moment for him and we’d be very proud," Hearn said of Joshua. "We’re also aware of the challenge. I think most people believe A.J. is the favorite in the fight, but Daniel is a very live underdog. He’s dangerous. He punches very hard. It will be interesting to see how he can deal with the occasion and the emotion on the night. But like Frank said, anything can happen in this fight and that’s the beauty of the heavyweight division."