Are Caroline Dubois & Rhiannon Dixon The Future of the Lightweight Division?

Are Caroline Dubois & Rhiannon Dixon The Future of the Lightweight Division?

The trailblazing and iconic career of Katie Taylor could be entering the final phase. The Irish superstar will look to gain revenge on Chantelle Cameron next month and win, lose, or draw, we might not have too many more Katie Taylor fight nights to look forward to.

Taylor is near the end of her truly historic career, but already, there are two British fighters who look capable of dominating her old lightweight division and could quite easily have a series of fights between themselves that will not only elevate their own resume but also their sport.

Caroline Dubois and Rhiannon Dixon look set to take over the lightweight ranks once Taylor has departed the sport she has graced so magnificently for well over a decade. If she hangs around too long, Dubois or Dixon could even make the retirement decision for her.

Dubois has made no secret of her desire to literally fight anyone anywhere near her weight division. She has been labelled a future superstar by many. With good reason. Dixon has been going about her work a little more quietly, a little under the radar even, but 2023 has seen massive gains for the unbeaten Warrington lightweight.

Dubois and Dixon come from totally different worlds. Dubois, the former Olympian, and Dixon, the former White Collar fighter, might have taken completely different routes to get to where they are now, but while the entry to the sport may differ, they are likely to end up at the exact same place at some point in 2024.

Dubois has already shown an interest in fighting Dixon, but it is one of those fights that makes little sense in the short term. It has the potential to be a fight of much greater significance further down the line. A fight between Dubois and Dixon could quite easily be for undisputed status at lightweight in the next 18 months. It would be a shame to throw it away without letting it simmer and building it up to be a much bigger fight with multiple world titles on the line.

Dixon has steadily built up her skills and her reputation since she turned professional in 2019. From a base of very little, Dixon is now almost certainly one of the most improved fighters in the sport. The former pharmacist has been matched almost perfectly since her debut. Dixon won the Commonwealth and European titles in 2023, and her recent performance to win that European bauble against Katharina Thanderz was almost flawless. Dixon exceeded all expectations in London last month. She was expected to win, but not that easily. Dixon was seriously impressive as she thoroughly dominated the former world title challenger. It was very much her coming out party. The night she showed that she was very much a genuine world title prospect. Dixon is only nine fights in, and you sense the Anthony Crolla-trained fighter is still nowhere near her peak.

Dubois has always been highly touted. She has the look of something very special indeed. Dubois is only 22, but she already looks capable of being thrown in with practically anyone in the upper echelons of the lightweight ranks. And you suspect that she would win.

Both fighters, if you take the Boxrec and Ring Magazine gradings at face value, sit in the top 4 of their world rankings. It is difficult to find fault with that viewpoint.

The Dubois inner circle have shown in the past that they hold no fears about throwing their fighters in deep. You sense that if the opportunity comes to fight for a vacant title, Dubois and her team, regardless of the opponent, will almost certainly roll the dice. You would struggle to find a fighter that she wouldn’t be capable of beating. Dubois is impatient for her chance at a major world title or a big fight of any kind at any weight. That is no innocence of youth. It is with the utmost conviction of her abilities.

Dixon, you feel will not be rushed before her team thinks she is ready. The need to learn and develop further will not be washed away for a fight that might come a little too soon for her. But like Dubois, even now, you suspect Dixon would be favoured over practically any of her rivals. But she has time. Later, rather than sooner, would benefit Dixon in the long term. Another couple of learning fights before any world title opportunity would leave her much better prepared for her moment of truth. Taking the wrong fight at the wrong time has ruined many a career. The matchmaking for Rhiannon Dixon has been impeccable so far. That is unlikely to change.

Dubois (8-0) might have to show some semblance of patience also. The Shane McGuigan-trained fighter desperately wants the big names and the big fights right now. But those particular doors opening will largely be dependent on what Katie Taylor does after her upcoming rematch with Chantelle Cameron and if the alphabet boys show their own brand of impatience and more and start ordering some mandatories. At this stage of her career, Taylor is highly unlikely to be interested in such fights. Only the big fights will be of interest now for Taylor. If the world lightweight titles do splinter at some point in 2024, Dubois will be banging extremely loud on those doors. The IBO title she recently claimed is only the start of her belt collection on the world stage.

Caroline Dubois and Rhiannon Dixon are part of the new generation of talent that will take the women’s side of the sport to a new dimension. They are the future of the lightweight division, and there is every chance that the future might very well come sooner than a lot of people think. If the stars align, the next twelve months could see both Dubois and Dixon in possession of world title baubles. Then attention will surely turn to a big domestic all-British world title showdown with a plethora of titles on offer.

Photo Credit: PA Media/Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing