Dubois-Harper feud intensifies before April 5 unification

The rivalry between Caroline Dubois and Terri Harper boiled over during filming of The Gloves Are Off, setting the tone for their eagerly anticipated unification fight.

Dubois, the unbeaten WBC champion, opened with a chilly barrage of insults that left Harper momentarily speechless. Harper, the reigning WBO lightweight champion and former titleholder at super-featherweight and super-welterweight, shot back sharply: "Tell me what you've done. Another stupid comment."

Angry at being dismissed, Harper warned Dubois not to underestimate her, insisting she won't be an easy mark. "To be overlooking me and just thinking I'm going to be laid down and let her take the belt," she said, adding: "I'm here to make you taste your first defeat and rebuild and see how it feels. She's got a lot of maturing to do."

Dubois responded with equal coldness, making clear she does not respect Harper's record or reputation. "I don't rate you. I don't rate what you've done, I don't rate who you are as an athlete, as a fighter, as a person, I don't rate it," she told her rival. "I believe respect is earned, never given. I don't think she's earned my respect. She wants me to come and be nice. And I'm not going to do that."

Their clash for the WBC and WBO titles on Sunday April 5, live on Sky Sports, has taken on a personal edge after a tense head-to-head and a lingering confrontation after filming. "This fight for me is not about the belts. It's nice to win the belts. But it's even nicer to beat Dubois," Harper said. Dubois warned that a loss would cost more than a title: "She's coming to take my belt, coming to take everything I've been fighting for since I was nine years old, coming to take my legacy. If she wins, she's taken all of that."