Triple D, 28, had been in talks to battle The Cuban Flash, 33, to potentially become the mandatory challenger to Oleksandr Usyk’s, 38, IBF heavyweight title, but Dubois has dropped out of the fight.

Although Dynamite has taken himself out of the running, Sanchez is still set to fight in an IBF eliminator, with Jared Anderson, 26, touted as the most likely candidate to replace Dubois and face The Cuban Flash.

A spokesperson for Queensberry, Dubois' promoter, told Sky Sports: “The eliminator holds little value right now for Daniel. Derek Chisora was named the IBF mandatory at their last convention so the fight vs Frank Sanchez is to be installed as next in line after Chisora.

“Add to that the IBF is last in the queue of the unified championships held by Usyk. If Daniel accepted the fight, it would also limit his options with the other organisations.

“Daniel was proud to be IBF champion but the order and fight itself do little for his career and getting him back into a position to fight for a world title.

“Daniel will be back in 2026 and there are some huge fights out there for him.”

Dubois isn’t the first boxer to turn down the eliminator fight, as Efe Ajagba, 31, Moses Itauma, 20, and Richard Torrez Jr., 26, had all previously rejected the bout.

Had Dubois fought and beaten Sanchez, Triple D would have been set for a third bout with Osyk, following his second loss to The Cat in July.

After being knocked out by Usyk in the fifth round, Dubois praised his opponent, though vowed he’d be back.

He said in a statement: “I have to commend him on his performance. I gave everything I had, probably a few things I could have sharpened up on, but take no credit away from the man. I was just fighting, I was in a fight and trying to pick up round by round.

“It is what it is, but I'll be back. I want to thank everyone for coming out. I gave my best, we'll go back to the drawing board and come again.”