DeGale will have “best performance of his career,” says trainer

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James DeGaleWith UK super-middleweight James DeGale (20-1, 14KO’s) just days away from his first world title bid against the American Andre Dirrell (24-1, 16 KO’s) in Boston, Massachusetts on May 23rd, his business manager, Ambrose Mendy and trainer Jim McDonnell, spoke with iFL TV to talk up their charge’s chances.

The pair stood side-by-side in a crowded gym where they were asked what we can expect when DeGale and Dirrell step in the ring to contest one another for the vacant IBF World super-middleweight title.

AM: “Best performance of his [DeGales’s] career.”

JM: “Yeah, I’ll back that, boxing a very good opponent in Dirrell; a tricky southpaw who knows the ropes, Olympic bronze medalist. James has to perform to the best of his ability, and he will.”

DeGale is also a left-handed operator and so the possibility of an awkward encounter exists because lefties (southpaws) are so used to fighting orthodox (right-handed) fighters. When treated to a rare glimpse in the mirror, two southpaws can sometimes struggle to establish a rhythm and distance, similar to when a righty faces a southpaw.

Mendy had his salesman’s hat welded to his head when asked what he expects from this fight when considering this particular aspect.

“A really exciting fight, I think the two styles will gel. There’s a Plan A and Plan B on both sides, but who carries the fastest guns in the west? That’s the real question. And, I say undoubtedly it’s James DeGale.”

Jim McDonnell was far more specific when asked what condition DeGale is in leading up to the most important life of his night. Given the unsavoury aftermath of Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao, in which the latter claimed a shoulder injury hindered his chances, reassurance that DeGale is not concealing any of his ailments before the event was welcome.

“People say things that are cliche, but I deal with facts, not fiction. Everything’s written down; everything’s recorded from the day he turned professional to where he is today. He is officially 100%, in the best condition of his career. Dirrell will find that when the first bell rings.”

DeGale and his team will surely have every available digit crossed that nothing goes wrong now that this opportunity has finally arrived. The 29-year-old’s road to a world title has been diverted on several occasions, firstly by an unexpected loss into George Groves in his eleventh pro appearance, but that was a blip that could happen to anyone. Mainly he has been held back by an ongoing lack of exposure due to his contract with an unfashionable television channel that did not reach enough of the boxing public to build his stature as a viable world contender. Now, he is on Sky Sports and signed to Matchroom Sports, and his visibility has increased ten-fold.

Through all of these setbacks, McDonnell revealed there has been one particular dream that has kept DeGale pushing through.

“From day one when he turned professional we set out the goals, set out the dreams and his main dream was to become the first Olympic gold medalist from our country to win a world title. So that has been a driving force in his career and now it’s his chance to deliver and he won’t let anyone down.”

This world title bid may have come a little later after his Beijing success in 2008 than he probably would have liked, but DeGale now has his destiny in his hands. He has fought more consistently and against better opposition than Dirrell over the last year, and even when you take into account that he is traveling to the States for this fight, he must be the favourite going in.