“Daniel needs to hear his dad. The (Jarrel) Miller fight triggered it. Me and Frank (Warren) realized we need to get Stanley officially in as the fourth cornerman,” Daniel Dubois’ head trainer, Don Charles, told Donald McRae of The Guardian ahead of the Oleksandr Usyk rematch. From what’s known about the father-son duo, Stanley, aka Dan Dubois, is an imposing figure with a strong influence over his son, who is known to be reclusive and introverted. But is that influence always good?

Reports emerged that before his fight against the Ukrainian boxing legend last week, ‘DDD’ was seen at a party surrounded by a large group of men at their house. According to the report, the gathering was organized by his father and even caused the fighter to arrive late at Wembley Stadium. When footage of the party surfaced, it sparked widespread criticism, especially after Dubois suffered an even more decisive defeat than before. Whether Dubois Sr is proving to be a negative influence or not is for the inner circle to decide, but Dubois’ former trainer has hinted that it’s time to cut the umbilical cord.

“I think that there’s a closeness between Daniel and his father from what I observed when I was in the camp with him,” coach James Bashir told Seconds Out. Bashir trained Dubois before the first Oleksandr Usyk fight alongside Don Charles—his expertise working with Usyk in the past made him the secret weapon. While Dubois was unsuccessful, Bashir had noticed a lot of things, especially about the relationship between Daniel and his father. “We [were] in Spain and then we flew back to London together. And I got a chance to observe the relationship that he has with [his] father.”

And Bashir thinks it could cause Dubois’ downfall. “I think it’s a pretty close relationship, maybe so close that it could be to his undoing,” Bashir said. “He has to break off from the emotion that he has with his father and pay more attention to the tutelage of Don Charles because Don Charles is the trainer.” For some time now, speculations about a rift between Charles and Dubois Sr have surfaced, but it has always been denied by their camp. Regardless, Bashir claims Dubois needs to prioritize Charles’ instructions over his father.

This way, Bashir believes Dubois can reemerge and get the title. “I think he has some more maturing to do both as a young man and as a boxer,” he told the reporter. Whether or not Dubois heeds this advice is yet to be seen, but for now, Charles is defending Dubois and his team. 

Daniel Dubois’ trainer denies pre-fight party disrupted preparations before the Oleksandr Usyk loss

Since outrage has taken over the internet thanks to the pre-fight party, trainer Don Charles has come forward to defend Daniel Dubois, claiming it didn’t disrupt preparations for the Usyk fight. Despite Dubois’ late arrival, Charles claimed the event in question was a “cultural gathering,” and not a party.

“It was the same sort of gathering that was done back in September last year when Daniel was going to fight Anthony Joshua,” said Charles. “It worked and it helped Daniel to be in the mode, fight mode to be destructive.” He argued that Dubois had ample time for pre-fight rituals, noting, “We were able to do everything with 10 minutes to spare.” 

Is it wrong to have a close relationship with your father? Of course not. But Bashir seems to believe that the bond is interfering with Dubois’ boxing career. Still, could it simply be that Oleksandr Usyk was just the superior fighter on the night? What’s your take?