Badou Jack dropped James DeGale in the 12th round of their fight this January; some time for DeGale to go down for the first time as a professional. At that moment, it appeared the IBF and WBC Super Middleweight titles were about to be unified. And in the favour of the Swedish fighter. DeGale would need to show serious resilience now.
The southpaw from Hertfordshire managed to return to his feet, but the punishment wasn’t over. Jack rushed back in on his opponent, sensing a kill, and with little time to consolidate his position. DeGale though gathered himself, and managed to return fire. DeGale had clearly lost the round, but certainly not the fight.
When the judges of the New York State Athletic Commission handed up their official scorecards, it was DeGale who had two points more overall; however, the scores of 114-112 to DeGale and 113-113 from the two other judges, meant that a majority draw was awarded.
DeGale would return to St Albans, north of London with his IBF title in tack. Jack to his Nevada residence with the WBC belt. In August, Jack added the WBA World Light Heavyweight title to his collection. DeGale was able to do no such thing. Replacing his two front teeth that Jack had knocked out was nothing compared to the damage he had done to his shoulder.
With a 180 degree tear suffered in the Jack fight, DeGale’s rotator cuff was torn, to put it in the fighter’s own words, his “shoulder was mashed.” It completely compromised the movement in his shoulder and in effect his ability to punch. It adds a bit of background to the result in Brooklyn, but recovery and not excuses, are what has been on DeGale’s mind since.
Following surgery, DeGale spent three months in rehabilitation, a time in which doubt set in and fear of his future in the ring was a reality he had faced. But the long road back is almost complete. From learning to lift his arm, to doing the basics, it is only in the last two months that he has started punching again.
@jamesdegale1 on THAT picture after his fight with Badou Jack...
The British Olympic gold medal winner, makes his return home on Saturday night in the Copper Box Arena in Hackney Wick, London; the former Olympic stadium and current home of basketball team the London Lions. American, Caleb Truax, will be the visitor.
Truax, a seasoned fighter from Minnesota will not get a chance like this again, and may well have to draw on this opportunity and its magnitude to add some extra zeal. While Truax has a marginally longer reach than DeGale, he is unlikely to have the power to truly test DeGale.
Which may be part of the thinking, considering, for all any understood bravado, there is a nervousness surrounding just how robust his shoulder is. It simply has to be tested to know what its true worth now is.
If DeGale overcomes Truax and his shoulder doesn’t let him down, a unification fight against WBA World Super Middleweight title-holder David Benavidez beckons. And if the narrative follows course, a George Groves rematch awaits down the road.
But there is a long way to go before that becomes any sort of a reality.
