Dubois (23-3, 22 KOs) will put his WBO heavyweight title on the line against Wardley (20-1-1, 19 KOs) at London’s O2 Arena, just five months after beating him for it May 9 in Manchester.

Now Dubois has explained that their second clash, the result of an immediate rematch clause in their contract, will kick off his run toward becoming undisputed heavyweight champion.

“I’m on a journey towards undisputed and I’ve got six fights,” Dubois told a group of reporters. “That’s what is in my head right now, within six fights. I’m not thinking about retirement, but it’s six big fights and that’s what I’ve got. You need goals in boxing and that’s what I’ve got.”

Oleksandr Usyk, who has beaten him twice, remains Ring champion and has suggested that he will fight just once more.

Dubois is The Ring’s No. 1 contender for Usyk’s crown. Agit Kabayel, The Ring’s No. 2 contender, is WBC champion. Filip Hrgovic, No. 4 in The Ring top 10, is the IBF champion by virtue of his shock victory over rising star Moses Itauma, who slipped to eighth after a ninth-round TKO defeat August 29 at O2 Arena.

The WBA “super” title will be claimed by either Tyson Fury, ranked No. 3 by The Ring, or Anthony Joshua, who is not ranked inside the top 10, when they meet December 11 at Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. Russia’s Murat Gassiev owns the WBA “regular” title.

When asked to outline what route he would like to take toward undisputed, Dubois said, “It’s all of these guys. There’s no specific names, but whoever has the belts.

“There’s no number ones floating about. There’s Kabayel, Hrgovic now, Gassiev, just usual names floating about. For me, I see six big fights.”

Dubois is in the midst of his second world title reign. The London native was upgraded from interim to full champion by the IBF in June 2024. He defended that title with a stunning knockout of Joshua three months later, but surrendered it when Usyk knocked him out again in July 2025 at Wembley Stadium.

“It has felt good, but it’s time to get it underway now,” Dubois said of his second championship run. “It’s quiet, sitting down, waiting on people to make up their mind on what they’re going to do, so I’m glad I've got a fight. I don’t like to just be sitting about. I need goals in life, goals in my boxing career, so now I know what direction my head is.

“I’m glad he’s taken it now. I’ve refreshed myself. I’ve got the belt now and the nerves I felt going into the first fight are gone and I’m feeling ready for it.”

Those nerves might help explain why Wardley managed to knock Dubois down within the first 10 seconds with the first meaningful shot that landed. There were echoes of his memorable three-round fight with Kevin Lerena in December 2022, when he touched down three times in the opener before coming back to win via stoppage.

“He will be taking heart from catching me early, but this time round I’ve got something for him,” Dubois said. “It was just something I had to go through, a test, and shaking off the cobwebs for me. That’s it. No more slow starting. I’ll get a good warmup and come out firing.”

Despite the early knockdown, and a second one which followed in the third round, Dubois roared back to stop Wardley on his feet in the 11th. The former champion from Ipswich showed scarcely believable heart to stay standing throughout the bout and his corner received criticism for not pulling him out far sooner.

Dubois, however, sees it slightly differently.

“I just wish I was more clinical and took him out earlier than that,” he said. “I wish I had jumped on him sooner. I wish I’d seen the opening, but now I’ve got the opportunity to put it right. It was a good fight to shake off the cobwebs for me and I got a few rounds. Now I want to get him quicker, get all of this out of the way and move on.”