Ricardo Snijders steps in as late replacement to fight Daniel Dubois behind closed doors

Daniel Dubois will defend his WBO International heavyweight title against Ricardo Snijders behind closed doors at BT Sport studios on Saturday night with a blockbuster contest against British rival Joe Joyce awaiting on October 24 should the division's most fancied prospect come through the challenge of the Dutchman.

The British and Commonwealth champion was due to face double Olympian and two time world amateur championships bronze medallist Eric Pfeiffer, but issues with the German's medical tests derailed those plans last week.

While Dubois (14-0, 13KOs) has been in camp with trainer Martin Bowers for Pfeiffer, Dutch title holder Snijders (18-1, 8KOs) took his opportunity to jump into the world rankings with alacrity when the Dubois challenge was offered to him. For Dubois, still only 22, this is the chance to find his timing and shake off the ring rust after eight months out before the fight with unbeaten Olympic silver medallist Joyce, which, Telegraph Sport understands, will still go ahead behind closed doors if London’s O2 Arena in late October is not a viable venue due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"Of course it’s a disappointment that we have had to make a late change [of opponent], but the most important thing was getting Daniel a solid test," explained promoter Frank Warren. “We’ve had Snijders training for weeks getting ready for this fight on the off chance there was an issue."

"Pfeifer‘s team didn’t submit his MRI on time and given the current circumstances we couldn’t stand for the uncertainty or take the risk that the fight would be pulled at the last minute. Daniel hasn’t boxed since last December, some eight months ago. That’s a long time, especially for Daniel who has always been active."

"Daniel trained at home with his sister and younger brother during lockdown and he has been back in the gym with his trainer Martin Bowers for several weeks. Joe got an impressive win last month, so this is Daniel’s chance to show what he’s made of.

"Snijders fancies the fight and was happy to say ‘yes’ and jump at the opportunity of his career. He’s coming up from Cruiserweight and wants to follow in the footsteps of fighters like Usyk, Haye and Bellew.”

Snijders, 26, turned professional in January 2016 and little more than two years later claimed the Dutch title. Seven of his last eight wins have come inside the distance, and knows he will need his power to hold off Dubois. In his last outing, Ricardo knocked out Istvan Kun inside two rounds.

Warren rates Dubois as the finest prospect in the heavyweight division and the world governing bodies appear to agree. Dubois is currently ranked number three for Anthony Joshua’s WBO belt and is at No 7 seven for the WBC title held by Warren stablemate Tyson Fury.

Warren added: “Providing Daniel can solve this Dutch puzzle, we can push on with the Joyce fight and then we can hope for a world title fight next year as a mandatory contender.”

As last weekend's heavyweight contest between Dillian Whyte and Alexander Povetkin showed, the best laid plans can be derailed by a single punch in the heavyweight division. Whyte was in control of the contest until the fifth round, when the Russian stopped the Londoner with a perfectly timed and placed left uppercut, which has removed Whyte from his mandatory world title challenger status with the WBC sanctioning body. But I expect Dubois to find his range and stop Snijders inside four rounds.