DOWN AND OUT
Eubank calls time on DeGale
The world marks its time by the Greenwich Meridian so we should have known the witching hour was nigh. Midnight was approaching as the spectre of youth, in the shape of Chris eubank Jnr, came to haunt James DeGale.
Years have ebbed away since DeGale became the first British boxer to add a world title to Olympic gold and age caught up with him on Saturday night.
A phantom known as Junior came to deliver Father Time’s cruel message and a veteran warhorse called Chunky duly paid heed.
The 33-year-old DeGale, having risen twice from the canvas, carried his shield the 12-round distance but then answered the judgment of the scorecards by conceding: ‘ I’m pretty sure that’s it.’ Family and friends will no doubt bring finality to that decision, clearing the path for 29-year- old eubank as cleanly as that Greenwich sundial divides east and west.
Son of Chris, having claimed his first victory over one of the ring’s elite, can seek the world titles which would define his claim to his father’s legacy. It is a prospect well-earned by this irresistible performance.
The world, if not yet his oyster, becomes ripe with opportunity for eubank. Although the waters were muddied by shifts among potential opponents.
eubank was initially sceptical about Billy Joe Saunders, citing allegations of ‘drugs cheating’. Now, having accepted it might ‘absolutely’ be a rematch worth making ‘to win a belt’, he learns Saunders may not be fighting for the WBO super- middleweight title after all if a date with Shefat Isufi goes ahead at Wembley Arena on April 13.
That title was thought to be vacant, but the champion, Gilberto Ramirez, has now denied he is moving up to lightheavyweight and announced that he will soon be defending his 12-stone crown in America.
If so, that renders a fight with Isufi, who is little known outside his native Serbia, virtually meaningless to Saunders. By extension, his potential value to eubank would be diminished.
Callum Smith, having relieved George Groves of his WBA world title, would be an even bigger fish for eubank to fry. But the Liverpool star is being lined up for a defence in the US which would be televised on Sky in the UK, while eubank is currently boxing on ITV.
happily the ‘ politricks,’ as Lennox Lewis used to call boxing’s financial machinations, were not in play this weekend.
A matter of ‘do or die’ was how eubank put it as he and DeGale went at each other with a vengeance. Their grudge was settled by the power of youth and aggression over ageing craftsmanship and experience. That and raw hunger.
‘I just had to win this fight,’ said eubank. ‘I could not have a loss in this one weighing down the rest of my career. I needed to make a statement.’
Make that an emphatic declaration to resolve a bloody struggle. Both suffered early cuts from head clashes.
eubank lifted DeGale into the air in the eighth and slammed him to the floor like a WWE wrestler. For that, he had a point rightly deducted by referee Michael Alexander. But it was the two times he sent Chunky to his knees, once early and once late, which proved decisive.
Those two 10-8 rounds exemplified the nature of the battle in which he was given the unanimous verdict by scores of 114-112, 115-112 and an excessive 117-109. By my count 114-111.
For all his skill and wisdom, DeGale could not fend off all eubank’s swarming ambition.
So thunderous were some of the blows that eubank declared a truce to their pre-fight enmity, saying: ‘I have knocked opponents out with punches like that but James would not give up. Instead he got up to fight to the end. I did not know he had that in him. Respect.’
DeGale conceded: ‘I couldn’t do enough to prevent his strength winning the fight.’