Alycia Baumgardner has warned Caroline Dubois not to bite off more than she can chew after the Brit called her out this week.
Unified junior lightweight champion Baumgardner (16-1, 7 KOs) and WBC lightweight champion Dubois (11-0-1, 5 KOs) will both fight on the undercard of Jake Paul’s clash with Anthony Joshua on Friday [8 p.m. ET, 1 a.m. Saturday GMT, Netflix].
The two unexpectedly exchanged words at Wednesday’s news conference and while Baumgardner, 31, praised Dubois, the American also sent a warning urging the 24-year-old to “be patient.”
“One thing about Caroline, she’s a hungry fighter. For a UK fighter to come to a platform like MVP to fight on Netflix, that gets somebody hungry as a champion, she should be hungry,” Baumgardner told ESPN.
“But I also know as a woman with experience in this game, take your time. Be patient. That’s why I called her a puppy.
“She’s hungry and sometimes you can bite off too much. And I want her to understand from a woman with experience in this game, take your time.
“I understand you’re hungry. I’m hungry too. But baby, don’t bite off [more] than you can chew because I’m a big dog.”
Baumgardner, who will fight Leila Beaudoin under men’s rules of 12 three-minute rounds, has been labelled the next face of women’s boxing by Paul.
While she didn’t rule out a fight against Dubois, Baumgardner said she wants to see more from the Brit.
“I’m way too much. I have to see her fight somebody,” Baumgardner said. “She’s calling me out. I’m still undisputed at 130 [pounds]. You are at 135. Go fight one of those other champions like I did … go do something.
“Get me excited to be like, you know what? Yeah girl, you can get this fight, but I’m business first.”
After signing for MVP last week and immediately fighting on the Paul-Joshua undercard, Dubois took aim at Baumgardner earlier this week, saying: “I feel like she walks around like she’s the biggest, baddest fish in the pond and that’s not true.
“I believe I am. So when she says that and has that energy, it triggers me a little bit because I’m like: ‘That’s not right.’
“It’s important we’re on the same card so people can see and use us as a yardstick among each other and make up their own minds who is the baddest.”
