Caroline Dubois and Shane McGuigan: ‘She has that X factor, that wow factor’

As the lights dim and the noise booms around her Caroline Dubois will walk to the professional ring for the first time with her trainer, Shane McGuigan, on Saturday night in Cardiff. Her debut in front of a packed and fevered crowd will continue one of the most intriguing collaborations in British boxing. Dubois, who has just turned 21, is the most promising young female fighter in the country while the 33-year-old McGuigan has established himself among the world’s best trainers.

Her fight against Vaida Masiokaite, a Lithuanian journeywoman who has had 20 pro bouts, is third on a bill headlined by athe grudge match between Liam Williams and Chris Eubank Jr. It is yet another significant boost for women’s boxing that the chief support features Claressa Shields, the formidable American, and will be preceded by Dubois’s highly anticipated entry into the professional ranks.

Boxing is finally back in Britain, after the sport has been in lockdown since Christmas, and female fighters will play a more prominent role than ever. On 30 April, Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano will headline the first promotion that is likely to make both boxers more than $1m each when they meet at Madison Square Garden.

Today we are a long way from New York in an engagingly stark boxing club that adjoins Leyton cricket ground in east London. All nine of McGuigan’s stable of fighters – including the world champion cruiserweight, Lawrence Okolie, and Caroline’s brother, the heavyweight Daniel Dubois – are here. It is a cold and murky Tuesday but, inside, the gym hums with purpose and resolve.

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As other fighters stretch, skip or hit the heavy bags dangling from the high