Caroline Dubois wants another landmark event in women's boxing and to fight Mikaela Mayer in a high-profile lightweight showdown; Dubois beat Yanina Lescano in her last fight and believes she is on course for a world title fight sooner rather than later
Thursday 6 July 2023 11:03, UK
Caroline Dubois once looked up to Mikaela Mayer. Now she is looking to fight her.
London's Dubois is just seven fights into her professional career but in her last contest beat Yanina Lescano, who's highly ranked in the world at lightweight.
America's Mayer is a former unified champion at super-feather and has now moved up to 135lbs, the same division as Dubois.
The Briton wants to box Mayer in a high-profile event.
She did praise Mayer's contribution to women's boxing. "I've watched her since she turned pro. I was watching after the Olympics in 2016. I watched pretty much every fight of hers," Dubois said.
"It's amazing to see how she's done and how she's helped progress the sport."
However, Dubois made it clear that she now considers Mayer as a rival not merely a role model, saying: "She's moved up to my division. So she's competition now. She isn't just somebody that I can just look up to, she's competition."
Dubois expressed her confidence that a fight with Mayer is within reach, envisioning a highly anticipated match that would attract similar levels of interest to Claressa Shields vs Savannah Marshall. The Mayer fight is her target. "100%. That's what I want," she said.
"That's what I've always wanted. Mikaela Mayer and me, we can sell out the 02 Arena again, it's going to be amazing."
Dubois has drawn inspiration from the success of her fellow gym-mates, such as Chris Billam-Smith and Ellie Scotney, who both secured world titles in their last bouts. Their achievements motivate Dubois to elevate her own game. "Chris has gone and won a world title, Ellie's gone and won a world title. It's time for me to step up now and start bringing what I bring to the game and doing my own thing," she said.
Dubois is eager to fight for a world title this year but recognises that will depend on the outcome of other significant matchups.
She explained: "I'll be pushing for it. I think if [Katie Taylor] goes and fights at 140lbs or fights Amanda Serrano, she's going to have to vacate and if the belts are vacated, then I'll be ready to snatch them up."
Her most recent victory over Lescano, Dubois believes, is another step in the right direction. She dropped the Argentine as she went eight rounds for the first time.
She made a noteworthy comparison to Olympic gold medallist Estelle Mossely, who also beat Lescano but on a split decision and without a knockdown.
Dubois confidently stated: "I feel like my performance was better than Estelle's and she's an Olympic champion."
However, she emphasised that Mossely is not a benchmark for her own success, asserting: "I'm not really comparing myself to her. I'm not going to say what I did better than Estelle because, no disrespect, I don't really rate her, so I can't really go over that."
While Dubois doesn't have an exact date set for her next fight, she is aiming to box next in August.
"I've learned to be resilient and to just keep moving forward. Keep pushing, no matter what's happening because everybody has distractions," she said.
"You've just got to keep pushing forward and keep pushing through."
