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Nick Parkinson
Caroline Dubois will challenge WBC interim world lightweight champion Maira Moneo in the biggest test of her professional career at Oakwell Stadium in Barnsley, England, on Aug. 3.
The victor will take a step closer to a shot at the WBC world lightweight title, held by two-weight undisputed champion Katie Taylor of Ireland, who faces Amanda Serrano in a rematch on the undercard of Jack Paul and Mike Tyson’s fight in Texas on Nov. 15.
Taylor is also undisputed super lightweight champion and will defend those titles against Serrano. Moneo (14-1, 3 KO), 31, from Montevideo, Uruguay, is more experienced than Dubois and in December 2022 outpointed two-division world champion Erica Anabella Farias.
Her only defeat came by disqualification, due to a clash of heads versus Yanina del Carmen Lescano in 2020. Dubois (9-0, 5 KOs), 23, of London, has also signed a long-term promotional deal with U.K.-based BOXXER as she targets progressing to a world title shot later this year, or a clash with Taylor in 2025.
Dubois, who turned professional in 2022 after competing at the last Olympics, said: “I’m ready to announce myself on the big stage. I want to be world champion. I want to be fighting for world titles against the likes of [WBO champion] Rhiannon Dixon, [IBF champion] Beatriz Ferreira and [WBC and WBA champion] Katie Taylor. I want to unify the division. I want to be undisputed and then I want to move up in weight.
“Moneo is a fight that can propel me to the next level. She is going to bring that South American mentality, tenacity and energy. She has a lot of experience. She’s going to be aggressive and nonstop punching and I’m ready and I’m excited for that.
“Every time I step in the ring, I want to do damage. I want to excite people. I want people to say: ‘Wow, that Caroline Dubois, she’s something special!’ Whether it’s a knockout or a 10-round beatdown, I want to be the standout performance of the night, and on August 3rd, I’m coming to steal the show.
“After this fight, I will be on a collision course with Katie Taylor. I will be the interim champion, her mandatory and unless she vacates, we’re fighting next.”
It will be a big couple of months for the Dubois family as Caroline’s brother Daniel makes a first defence of the IBF world heavyweight title against English rival Anthony Joshua, the former champion, at Wembley Stadium on Sept. 21.