Caroline Dubois has again promised a clinical knockout of Terri Harper on Sunday, but Harper warned her rival that talk won’t save her if she doesn’t deliver. The pair’s frosty exchanges boiled over during the final press conference, which ended with a brief flexing-arm moment and security stepping in as they posed for photos.
Dubois has done most of the talking in the build-up, while Harper mostly kept her composure — until a face-off earlier this week when Harper shoved Dubois. Both fighters downplayed any personal hatred, but they traded sharp words at the podium, with Dubois defending her aggressive approach and Harper questioning Dubois’s mindset.
Dubois has repeatedly predicted a stoppage, insisting the fight won’t go beyond seven rounds and that she will have her hand raised on Sunday. Harper, the WBO lightweight champion, said Dubois’s best option is a knockout. If Dubois fails to knock her out, Harper warned, she’ll be in trouble.
Harper pointed to her experience against top names — including Alycia Baumgardner, Sandy Ryan, Natasha Jonas and Cecilia Brækhus — and called Dubois the toughest opponent on her resume. But she rejected the notion that Dubois must earn her respect. After keeping a lower profile through much of the build-up, Harper used this week to assert herself.
“I’m not here to make up the numbers,” Harper said, accusing Dubois of getting too emotionally invested and being mentally vulnerable. Harper believes the fight will come down to discipline and composure — qualities she says she has developed through a broader range of high-level fights that Dubois has yet to face.
Dubois said she embraces the noise around the fight and considers psychological games part of the preparation. She argued that her trash talk is a tactic to gain an edge and rejected accusations of bullying, saying she’s simply a challenger who thrives on pressure. Dubois claimed superiority not just in power but in boxing ability, citing her extensive sparring history — much of it against male fighters — and saying she first sparred a woman at 16.
Harper plans to press the action in the middle of the ring and believes the early rounds are where Dubois will be most dangerous. She expects to use her conditioning and engine to take control in the later rounds. Dubois dismissed the idea that Harper’s main asset is stamina, calling it a weak way to approach a fight and insisting she brings skills, power and a strong jab.
Both fighters stressed that their rivalry is professional rather than personal — a clash driven by high stakes and the desire to move onto bigger opportunities. The settling of that rivalry comes this Sunday: watch Caroline Dubois vs Terri Harper live on Sky Sports from 7pm.