British heavyweight expected to work on comeback with Tony Sims, who trains Conor Benn. Team overhaul comes weeks after his fifth-round defeat at Wembley

Oleksandr Usyk punches Daniel Dubois in a boxing match.

Usyk got the better of Dubois again in July amid rumours of a chaotic build-up for the Briton, whose father threw a pre-fight party RICHARD PELHAM/GETTY IMAGES

Monday August 18 2025, 5.00pm, The Times

Daniel Dubois has parted ways with his coach Don Charles after his defeat by Oleksandr Usyk at Wembley Stadium last month.

The former IBF champion was stopped in the fifth round of the undisputed heavyweight title fight after a chaotic build-up to the bout. Dubois, 27, arrived at the stadium little more than an hour before he was scheduled to make his ring walk after his father, Stanley, had thrown a party at the family home for dozens of his friends earlier in the afternoon.Charles had been instrumental in Dubois’ resurgence after the pair teamed up in 2023, shortly before the Essex-based heavyweight challenged Usyk for the first time in Poland. The Ukrainian also won that bout by knockout, but Dubois then went on a tremendous run of victories against Jarrell Miller, Filip Hrgovic, and Anthony Joshua to be crowned IBF champion.

Daniel Dubois and Don Charles at a press conference.

Charles, left, told The Times there were no ill feelings after parting ways with British heavyweight he’d trained for two years

ANDRZEJ IWANCZUK/NURPHOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES

Charles confirmed that Dubois had decided to find a new training team for his comeback, but said their partnership had ended on “good terms, with no ill feelings”.Dubois is expected to team up with Tony Sims for his comeback, who is also based in Essex and most notably trains Conor Benn.

Advertisement

Dubois produced a spirited effort in the first two rounds against Usyk but was then quickly dismantled by the 38-year-old’s vastly superior technique. He beat the referee’s count once in the fifth round but was then swiftly floored again by a left hook and the towel was thrown in.

The dynamic in Dubois’ corner had appeared disorderly, with his father often seemingly shouting instructions over Charles and his assistant, Kieran Farrell. The commotion is unlikely to have affected the result, but the events leading up to the biggest fight of Dubois’ career were hardly ideal either. A lot of the focus in the build-up to the latest bout with Usyk focused on Dubois’ father

RICHARD PELHAM/GETTY IMAGES

Dubois’ father is said to have invited dozens of his friends to the family home, where Daniel still lives, and essentially threw a party. A source close to Dubois’ team said that Daniel did not know all the guests and left for a drive at one stage, apparently to clear his head. The team’s arrival at Wembley was then allegedly delayed because Stanley requested that more people carriers be sent to accommodate the entourage. He then drove Daniel himself in his own car, which caused a further administrative issue as only the vehicles arranged by the organisers had been registered.When Dubois arrived at about 8.20pm, some of the entourage who did not have tickets were then denied entry to the stadium by security. A video on social media showed Stanley calling Daniel back towards the door. The source claimed Dubois’ father then essentially said neither he nor his son would enter if his friends were not also permitted.

Stanley did not respond when approached for comment.

Advertisement

Charles was not present at the party but previously defended it because a similar approach had worked before the Joshua fight in September 2024, when Dubois won by fifth-round knockout.

“It was more like a gathering, a cultural gathering,” Charles said. “I don’t think it was public, in fact it was the same [sort of] gathering that was done back in September last year when Daniel was going to fight Anthony Joshua. The same thing occurred where a lot was made of the ring walk. He came in [at Wembley] like a gladiator, he was charged up.“So call it a ritual, whatever, it worked and it helped Daniel to be in the mode, fight mode to be destructive. So the father replicated that again with the view that it should put Daniel in the right state of mind… It didn’t work this time and that’s why there’s a lot of lies going on instead of focusing on the actual fight. And there’s a lot of focus on this party. It was a gathering, a cultural gathering.”