Daniel Dubois Vs Filip Hrgovic: The Panel Prediction, Betting Tips & Preview
Daniel Dubois Vs Filip Hrgovic Betting Tips
The Panel Tip 1: Filip Hrgovic To Win By Decision Or Technical Decision – 19/5 with BetMGM
The Panel Tip 2: Filip Hrgovic To Land Over 150 Punches - 5/4 With Bet365
The Panel Tip 3: Daniel Dubois To Score A Knockdown – 7/4 With Bet365
A shot at the IBF world heavyweight title is the prize up for grabs when Daniel Dubois and Filip Hrgovic step through the ropes for their bout on Saturday evening.
Part of the Matchroom vs Queensbury card in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh, the winner of this fight will be in line to face Anthony Joshua in September for the IBF strap, unless undisputed champ Oleksandr Usyk can find a way to hang on to the belt.
That seems unlikely, so there’s plenty at stake for Hrgovic, who has been the top contender for the IBF version of the title for some time, and Dubois, the young Brit who gave a good account of himself against Usyk last August.
Dubois bounced back from the loss to Usyk to see off Jarrell Miller last December, but the unbeaten Hrgovic represents a step up in class from his last outing, a fact that’s reflected in the fight odds on boxing betting sites.
Hrgovic is a best price of 4/9 to move to 18-0, with Dubois 9/4 to record the biggest win of his career to date.
It’s been a feisty build-up and these two know each other from previous sparring sessions, with Hrgovic claiming he left mental scars on Dubois from those encounters.
Healing those wounds would take an almighty effort from Dubois and while he has the tools to give the favourite a fright, ultimately, The Panel finds it hard to look beyond a Hrgovic victory.
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Dubois Vs Hrgovic Prediction: Classy Croat Too Good For Dubois
These two last fought on the ‘Day of Reckoning’ card in December when Hrgovic steamrolled Mark de Mori, while Dubois went to war with Miller.
Dubois showed plenty of heart to secure the late stoppage but took far too many shots from Miller and can’t afford to give that many openings to Hrgovic.
At 26, Dubois is still a relative novice in the heavyweight division and has been dealt some harsh lessons in defeats to Joe Joyce and Uysk, who both stopped Dubois.
In both fights, the man they call Dynamite was defused late on, but may have learnt enough to take this fight all the way.
It’s not easy to get a read on how good his opponent Hrgovic is based on his record, which is littered with relative nobodies.
The notable exception is Zhilei Zhang with Hrgovic securing a pretty marginal decision over the Chinese fighter. It was a fight that could have gone either way, but ultimately the better work came from ‘El Animal’, who did a good job of nullifying Zhang’s power.
He may take a similar approach to this fight with Dubois, who certainly packs a punch and could hurt Hrgovic if he’s not switched on.
But the 31-year-old's excellent amateur pedigree and superior technical ability give him the platform to beat Dubois and The Panel believe the odds on a Hrgovic win on points may offer a bit of value.
Dubois banished questions over his fortitude against Miller and while only three of Hrgovic’s wins have come via the judges’ scorecards, Dubois is a better calibre of fighter than the majority of his previous opponents.
Hrgovic is odds-on to win via stoppage but 19/5 with BetMGM to win on points which seems a good route to go down for a fight where Hrgovic seemingly has more to lose than Dubois.
The Panel Tip 1: Filip Hrgovic To Win By Decision Or Technical Decision – 19/5 with BetMGM
High Work Rate The Key For Hrgovic
Boxing stats gurus CompuBox came up with an interesting comparison between the fighters on the ‘Day of Reckoning’ bill, looking at punches landed and thrown.
It suggested Hrgovic was one of the most accurate fighters on the card with a high motor, landing just over 15 punches per round.
He didn’t need that many shots to dispatch De Mori, but a look at his last win via decision against Zhang suggests he could easily pass the 150 punches landed threshold.
He caught Zhang 208 times in that fight and Dubois can expect a barrage to come his way.
The Panel Tip 2: Filip Hrgovic To Land Over 150 Punches – 5/4 With Bet365
Dynamite May Go Off
Dubois still wonders what might have been had his body shot that sent Usyk crumpling to the mat last August not been ruled a low blow.
Many felt the Brit had legally put the champion down for the count in round five, but the referee ruled it to have been below the belt.
If you are in the camp of it being a legal shot, then it was a good demonstration of Dubois’ power. As a fighter who has won 19 of his 20 fights via knockout, we should expect him to try and land a few bombs against Hrgovic.
Dubois landed the most punches of his career against Miller and his price to record a knockdown in this fight has caught the eye of The Panel.
Hrgovic can be lazy at times and was put down by Zhang. He’ll need to be wary of Dynamite going off in Saturday’s intriguing bout.
The Panel Tip 3: Daniel Dubois To Score A Knockdown – 7/4 With Bet365
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