Why Daniel Dubois’ dignity should not be questioned after agonising defeat by Joe Joyce

Heavyweight’s submission provoked a wave of criticism - but few have the right to doubt his valour

Daniel Dubois takes a knee in the 10th round (Getty Images)

Daniel Dubois might have taken a knee in submission against Joe Joyce, but it was certainly no desecration of the young heavyweight’s dignity or valour. That should at least be the message to those who have questioned the 23-year-old’s courage since he sank to the canvas at Westminster Church House last weekend. There is an old and futile adage in boxing that a fighter should go out on his shield and sooner be deprived of his senses than give into them, but in a sport where death’s threat is inextricable, there is no shame in self-preservation.

Dubois remains one of Britain’s brightest talents and accusations of quitting serve little purpose in boxing, where bravery is fundamental and trialled long before success is ever realised. It is a testament to Dubois’ own prodigiousness that he found himself battling such a decorated veteran of the amateur circuit as Joyce and it was through no absence of character that his will finally shattered after 10 gruelling rounds, when his orbital bone fractured and the nerve-endings around his left eye exploded in agony. At that point, as Dubois absorbed a relentless stream of jabs and his every cell screamed for survival, he gave in to the body’s most basic instinct and those who claim he should have fought onto a bitter end must first stop and consider the cost.

There will be plenty of time for convalescence, with Dubois released from hospital on Monday, but the criticism in the immediate aftermath of his first defeat will prove difficult to banish. David Haye and Carl Frampton both said they would rather be “dragged out of the ring” than surrender in such a fashion. Antonio Tarver, the former light heavyweight champion, pointed to a mental weakness in Dubois’ make-up that will inflict upon him his entire career.

READ MORE: Joyce the only winner on a strange night for old, new and fallen boxing heroes

It is important, though, to remember that while every boxer acknowledges the risk of fighting and their acts of heroism - battling through broken bones, torn muscles and intolerable pain - are celebrated, there is no obligation to persevere to a harrowing conclusion, especially for the entertainment of peers, a viewing audience or anyone else for that matter. Dubois will have known that long before he was sat in a cold ward on Monday, surrounded only by his family and those closest to him. Nobody else shares in the consequences suffered, the physical exhaustion and emotional turmoil; not least what might have been had the punishment continued any longer. Boxing is a ruthless and lonely sport, and its exponents owe nothing but to themselves.

There is nothing new or surprising, of course, about the bloodlust within boxing. It is breathtaking and horrifying all at once, and while it might be perverse, gore will always provide greater entertainment than the fencing of jabs. But amid the unreasonable denunciations of Dubois, who left those craving a brutal finale feeling shortchanged, it is wise to listen to the few who’ve endured such perils rather than a majority that can scarcely imagine them.

Five years ago, Anthony Ogogo, the 2012 Olympic bronze medallist, felt his vision blur at the beginning of his fight against Craig Cunningham. At the end of each round, he begged his corner to allow him to continue even as it faded and, by the time the towel was eventually thrown in, his eye socket had been fractured in seven places. Ogogo underwent nine operations but his eye never fully recovered and his career vanished. That is the real consequence of a dashed dream, the bitter trauma hidden behind the montages of trash talk and knockouts. “Boxing is hard enough, suffering a loss, however it comes, but especially due to an injury is hard enough,” Ogogo wrote after Dubois’ defeat. “I’ve been there. Some ‘experts’ chucking in their two pennies worth when the kid has suffered a serious injury and career is in the balance is insensitive.”

Dubois succumbed to the pain and lost the heart to suffer it any longer. That is indisputable, but for those who insist on calling him a quitter, they should at least not question his pride. At 23 years old, after a fast-tracked career, he was exposed to a gulf in class that was simply too great to bridge. His early overachievement proved his own downfall, not a lack of bravery, and Dubois still has plenty of time to resurrect his career and defy harsh critics in the most unforgiving of sports. In a moment of untenable agony, he sank to his knee and caved in to the torture. That will not stop him, should he wish, from standing up and fighting again.