Mayweather Promotions CEO: Jack Will Knock Out James DeGale!

By Keith Idec

Leonard Ellerbe doesn’t just think Badou Jack will beat James DeGale.

Mayweather Promotions’ chief executive officer expects Jack to win by knockout January 14 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. London’s DeGale (23-1, 14 KOs) has lost only a 12-round majority decision to English rival George Groves (25-3, 18 KOs) in May 2011.

“I predict that Badou is going to deliver a knockout,” Ellerbe said during an open workout for Jack on Thursday in Las Vegas. “I envision him taking a handful of rounds to figure out DeGale’s style, while still being aggressive. In the later rounds, I think that he’s unstoppable.”

Jack’s past three fights have gone all 12 rounds. He has won just one of his past six bouts by knockout, and that sixth-round technical knockout came against Mexico’s Francisco Sierra (26-10-1, 23 KOs).

“James DeGale is a tremendous fighter,” Ellerbe said. “I’ve followed his career for quite some time. He’s a very flashy and creative fighter. He kind of makes it up as he goes. His style is unique, but there are some things that Badou and his team have put into place to disrupt DeGale. Badou Jack has seen every style out there. He’s mentally and physically prepared to take care of his opponent.”

Sweden’s Jack (20-1-2, 12 KOs), the WBC world super middleweight champion, is more than a 2-1 underdog as he gets closer to his 168-pound title unification fight against DeGale, the IBF champion. The Las Vegas resident, who’s represented by Mayweather Promotions, is 4-0-1 since suffering a first-round TKO loss to Derek Edwards (27-6-1, 14 KOs) in February 2014.

“A lot of things have contributed to Badou becoming the fighter who he is today,” Ellerbe said. “I think that he’s improved as a champion. A lot of the times people don’t understand what fighters have to go through early in their careers. Badou has overcome a lot of adversity, including evolving from his loss. There are very few fighters who become better fighters after they become champions. Badou is living the ‘American Dream,’ and Floyd and myself are very proud of him.”

Showtime will broadcast DeGale-Jack as the main event of a doubleheader. The telecast will start at 9:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. PT with a 12-round featherweight fight that’ll pit Puerto Rico’s Jose Pedraza (22-0, 12 KOs), the IBF world 126-pound champion, against Baltimore’s Gervonta Davis (16-0, 15 KOs).

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.