Caroline Dubois is charting a clear path towards an undisputed lightweight championship clash with American rival Alycia Baumgardner, though she has no intention of sitting idle while waiting for the winner of Baumgardner's upcoming title fight.
Baumgardner will step into the ring to challenge IBF lightweight champion Elif Nur Turhan on November 8, 2026 in Arlington, Texas, in a bout that will be broadcast live on ESPN. The contest forms part of a four-world-title-fight supercard at College Park Center, officially designated as MVPW-07.
As the unified WBC and WBO 135lb champion, Dubois expects to face the victor for the undisputed crown. However, rather than wait on the sidelines, she intends to strengthen her position by capturing another belt beforehand. Her target is Stephanie Han, who currently holds the WBA lightweight title.
I want to become undisputed and I want to be involved in relevant fights. To unify the division is my dream right now. The only other champion [available] is Han and we'll just have to see if I can get it in before the end of the year. If not we'll have to go early next year.
Hopefully we'll be unified world champion by the end of this year or early next. One belt away from becoming undisputed.
Dubois spoke to Sky Sports about her ambitions following a successful title defence against Amelia Moore in Birmingham last month. That victory kept her on track for a blockbuster meeting with Baumgardner, a fight that has been building momentum since the pair clashed at ringside in the immediate aftermath of the Moore bout.
The British champion has been vocal about her belief that Baumgardner fears her abilities.
She's most definitely intimidated by me. She's frightened of what I bring to the table. When she looks at me I know that she sees a younger, better, stronger, more talented, more everything better than her. Everything I do is just better than her. I feel like she's threatened by that.
Dubois pointed to the speed at which she has accumulated her accolades compared to her American counterpart.
Everything that she has had to work so hard to get I've had it and I've achieved it in such quick succession. She's threatened, she's jealous. She's feeling a lot of emotions and all I can say is I hope she can focus herself, get that win [over Turhan] and we can find out who's the best.
The feud between the pair intensified following their ringside confrontation in Birmingham, with Baumgardner publicly calling Dubois a coward in the days that followed. Dubois has made clear her desire to settle matters in the ring, expressing confidence in her rival's ability to overcome Turhan.
I hope she wins the fight. I'm going to be real upset if she doesn't win because I need to show her something.
Elif Turhan, the champion, versus Alycia Baumgardner, the contender, is going to be an awesome fight. I want the winner. I've made it very clear. I feel like I have been very vocal about the fact that I want to become undisputed.
The path has revealed itself to me. The path has become clear now... So close, but so far.
According to BBC Sport, Dubois' current expectation is that a Baumgardner fight would take place in 2027 if the American defeats Turhan. The timeline aligns with Dubois' stated preference to pursue the Han fight before year's end, or failing that, in early 2027.
Dubois arrives at this juncture with an unbeaten record of 15 professional fights, comprising 14 wins. Baumgardner's record stands at 18 wins, one loss and one no-contest, making the potential unification bout a clash between two of the division's most accomplished fighters.
MVP founder Jake Paul, who is involved in promoting the Baumgardner-Turhan bout, has indicated that both camps are prepared to move forward. Paul stated that both sides were "100 per cent ready to go when they want to sign the contracts" for a Dubois-Baumgardner fight.
What happens next
Baumgardner and Turhan will meet on November 8, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. Should Baumgardner emerge victorious, the path to an undisputed championship clash with Dubois would be clear, with the fight expected to materialise in 2027 pending the outcome of Dubois' pursuit of the WBA title held by Han.
