By Keith Idec
James DeGale didn’t hesitate to cross the pond again to make his first title defense.
The newly crowned IBF super middleweight champion from London will meet Montreal’s Lucian Bute on Saturday night at Videotron Centre in Quebec City, Canada. Showtime will televise their 12-round fight as the main event of a doubleheader scheduled to start at 11 p.m. ET/PT.
“I like boxing away from home,” DeGale said. “Maybe it’s time they start calling me ‘The Road Warrior.’ ”
The strong southpaw’s fight against the Romanian-born Bute (32-2, 25 KOs), a former IBF super middleweight champion, will mark DeGale’s second straight fight in North America. DeGale (21-1, 14 KOs) defeated Andre Dirrell (24-2, 16 KOs), of Flint, Mich., to win the then-vacant IBF 168-pound title in his last fight, May 23 in Boston.
The 29-year-old DeGale dropped Dirrell in the second round of their 12-round bout and won a unanimous decision (117-109, 114-112, 114-112). Beating Dirrell gave DeGale the biggest win of his 6½-year pro career.
“I think I am the best super middleweight out there right now,” DeGale said. “There are hard fights in the division. Badou Jack is a good fighter, but I think I beat him and beat him well if I stay switched on for the full 12 rounds.”
Jack out-pointed George Groves, DeGale’s British rival, in his last fight. Sweden’s Jack (20-1-1, 12 KOs) beat Groves (21-3, 16 KOs), who dealt DeGale his lone loss 4½ years ago, by split decision (116-111, 115-112, 113-114) on Sept. 12 in Las Vegas.
“I want to prove I am the best,” DeGale said. “I will go anywhere to do it and that’s why I am defending my title in Canada. All the world champions in Britain have great rivals on the doorstep, so it’s a really exciting time domestically as well for boxing in Britain right now. But I firmly believe I beat everyone in this division.”
Showtime’s doubleheader will begin with a 12-round WBC light heavyweight championship elimination match between Colombia’s Eleider Alvarez (18-0, 10 KOs) and South Africa’s Isaac Chilemba (24-2-2, 10 KOs).
Keith Idec covers boxing for The Record and Herald News, of Woodland Park, N.J., and BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.
