I got knocked out by Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois but fighter with just 8 KOs hit much harder

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Dorian Darch has shared the ring with some massive punchers including Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois.

But nobody hit him as hard as Ian ‘Lay Em Out’ Lewison.

The East Dulwich banger retired from professional boxing in 2017 with a record of 12-4-1, 8 of those wins coming by way of knockout.

During an eight-year stint in the paid ranks, Lewison won a Southern Area heavyweight title and unsuccessfully challenged for the British belt against Dillian Whyte in 2016.

Four years prior, Lewison stopped Darch in the fourth round at the Brentwood Centre.

Not only did he hand the Welshman the first defeat of his professional career but he also broke his jaw.

“Ian Lewison hit me the hardest,” Darch told talkSPORT.com. “I took 150 people to Essex thinking I was going to win.

“When you go out there and roll the dice you are more open to shots.

“And he just f***ing broke my jaw, nobody else has done that with or without the gloves so he must have been able to bang.”

In the years that followed his defeat to Lewison, Darch went from prospect to journeyman boxer.

One of his first assignments as an away fighter came against Joshua in 2014, two years removed from the Watford powerhouse’s Olympic Gold.

Darch was stopped in the second round when referee Terry O’Connor stepped in and waved off the contest after ‘Dark Fruits’ was caught on unsteady legs by a left hook.

Three years later he fought Dubois in ‘Triple D’s’ sixth professional outing and succumbed to the same fate.

Darch was knocked down three times by Dubois en route to the eventual stoppage but he insists he could have kept going.

“Even though Dubois knocked me down loads of times he never really hurt me,” Darch added.

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“They were flash knockdowns more than anything. I could have kept getting up from them whereas with AJ he hit me with a left hook and it was lucky the referee stepped in because he would have hit me into the crowd with the next one.

“He’d be the second hardest hitter behind Lewison. He could definitely bang as well.”

Joshua and Dubois are now set to square off on September 21 at Wembley Stadium in front of 96,000 fans.

Dubois was recently upgraded from interim to full world champion and will make the first defence of his title against AJ.

Oleksandr Usyk was forced the red and gold strap in order to pursue a rematch with Tyson Fury on December 21.

He will be ringside to witness the British heavyweight’s duke it out in the English capital.