Dubois upsets Hrgovic to capture interim heavyweight belt

Daniel Dubois finished Filip Hrgovic via doctor's stoppage TKO at the 0:57 mark of the eighth round to become the IBF interim heavyweight champion Saturday at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The ringside doctor ruled Hrgovic unable to continue due to cuts on his face.

After the victory, Dubois expressed interest in a matchup with fellow Brit Anthony Joshua, who needs an opponent for his Saudi-backed fight in September at London's Wembley Stadium.

"This is my era. This is my time," Dubois said after beating Hrgovic in the biggest win of his career.

Dubois and Hrgovic set a high pace for heavyweights in the first few back-and-forth rounds. But Dubois wore out Hrgovic as the fight progressed and became more grueling. Dubois rocked a tired Hrgovic with heavy punches in the seventh before putting him away in the eighth.

Dubois-Hrgovic was upgraded to an interim title bout earlier this week. The IBF initially planned to strip undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk of its title and make Saturday's fight for the full belt due to Usyk scheduling an immediate rematch with Tyson Fury instead of a mandatory defense. (Hrgovic had been Usyk's mandatory challenger since August 2022.) But Usyk requested an exception from the IBF last week to keep his undisputed status.

However, there's still a chance the IBF will promote Dubois to full champion before Usyk-Fury 2 takes place Dec. 21 in Riyadh.

Dubois is now riding a two-fight winning streak after beating Jarrell Miller last December. The 26-year-old London native challenged Usyk for the WBA, IBF, and WBO heavyweight titles last August but came up short via TKO.

Hrgovic, a 31-year-old from Croatia, came up short for the first time in his pro boxing career and now sits at 17-1.