"You can shout, you can tell them whatever, there is nothing you can do, it's them versus somebody else." Caroline Dubois on watching her big brother, rising heavyweight Daniel Dubois fight and the lessons she's learned from him going into her next contest
Wednesday 14 December 2022 16:39, UK
Caroline Dubois has learned plenty of lessons from her older brother, rising heavyweight star Daniel Dubois.
Earlier this month Kevin Lerena unexpectedly dropped Daniel on the Tyson Fury undercard at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium.
With an injured leg, the British heavyweight was under severe pressure in the first round against an opponent no-one thought would give him much trouble.
For Caroline it was a stark reminder that in boxing you can't take anything for granted.
Going into her fight on Saturday against Sofia Alejandra Rodriguez, live on Sky Sports, she is similarly the big favourite, but also knows she cannot be complacent.
"It's the sport of anything can happen," Dubois told Sky Sports.
"People can say, 'oh, you're getting in against a nobody, who is this person?' And you can get beat. That's just the way it is. You have to be switched on 100 per cent."
Daniel eventually turned his fight around, stopping Lerena in the third round. But it was nevertheless an upsetting experience for his sister, who could only watch on as her brother hit the canvas three times.
"I love boxing. But the only time I hate boxing is when my brother fights," she said.
"It's hard to explain, when you watch somebody get in the ring and there's nothing you can do. You can shout, you can tell them whatever, there is nothing you can do, it's them versus somebody else.
"You just have to sit, hold tight on the outside. It's a horrible feeling, it's very nerve-wracking and it's very scary. But I'm so proud of my brother. Whether he wins, whatever, he's my big brother and he's been one of the major inspirations why I started boxing myself."
For her fight in Bournemouth this week Dubois is looking to close out her first year as a professional in style. She has heaped pressure on herself by saying she wants to be the first person to stop Argentina's Rodriguez.
"The lights are on you, the attention's on you, everybody's watching you, the eyes are on you, which is a good thing but it's also a bad thing," she said.
"The moment you slip up, you mess up, you have a flat performance, people have got a lot to say and just that pressure on myself that every time I step in the ring, I have to show up and I have to show out.
"So I want to keep doing that and that pressure's obviously going to make me train harder, make me make sure I always perform."
Caroline Dubois will box on the Chris Billam-Smith undercard live on Sky Sports Mix from 7pm and Sky Sports Main Event from 7.30pm on Saturday December 17
