LONDON — WBC lightweight champion Caroline Dubois will fight Terri Harper in London on Sunday, April 5, at 19:00 BST. Dubois, 24, enters the bout after a period of personal upheaval outside the ring.

Dubois left the family home two years ago following a dispute with her father, Stan Dubois, also known as Dave. Some of her younger siblings left with her. She and her brother Daniel Dubois, both mostly home-schooled, grew up under their father's demanding boxing regimen. After the split, Caroline continued training under boxing coach Shane McGuigan in east London, while Daniel went his own way.

"It's such a messed-up situation. It's just so complex," she said in an interview at the McGuigan gym in Leyton, east London. "I haven't been able to watch him fight, in person or on TV, since I moved out," she added.

"I don't watch him as a friend, I watch him as a sister. It is hard if you're not there to speak to him and check in on him, go up to him afterwards and either console him or give him a slap on the back. It's been very hard," she said. She said she hopes to reconcile with Daniel and that time will heal their relationship.

McGuigan, who has guided multiple fighters to world titles, said the gym became a source of support for Dubois after the family split. "My advice to Caroline was to use boxing as guidance. Control what you can, turn up, and keep going. It's about being strong and believing in yourself," he said. "I'm in the gym with her for two or three hours a day, that's just a fraction of the day. The other 21 hours are for thinking and reflecting and it must have been tough. She grew up in a massive family with all her siblings around, and now she has fewer siblings around," he added.

In 2024, Dubois beat Maira Moneo to become the WBC interim champion. In December, she fought on the undercard of the Jake Paul versus Anthony Joshua event on Netflix, her first bout under the Most Valuable Promotions banner, where she exchanged words with Alycia Baumgardner.

"I'd say I've developed rather than changed in the past couple of years. When I started, I knew my own ability, but I hadn't proven it yet. Now I feel like I'm finally doing that," Dubois said. "To be a world champ, you have to be confident."