Former world champion boxer James DeGale is still months out from his debut with the BKFC, but that hasn’t stopped him gfrom etting some pre-fight prep in.
DeGale, an Olympic gold medal winner in Beijing back in 2008, will make his long-mooted debut in bare- knuckle fighting later this year, under the banner of the BKFC.
And retiring from boxing back in 2019 following an IBO super middleweight title fight loss to Chris Eubank Jr., DeGale will make his return to combat sports this September.
But ahead of his debut outing, DeGale got a taste of boxing without gloves this evening, in a rather nasty brawl.
James DeGale punches Matty Floyd after heated face-off in the ring
Meeting this evening with former professional boxer Matty Floyd, DeGale spoke with the Australian during a terse exchange in the ring to promote his debut with BKFC.
And vowing to beat Floyd — who maintained he would stop DeGale, the British Olympic gold medal winner was splashed with water, before firing a punch at the Australian.
Eventually separated and corralled — not before DeGale fired off a wayward left hand, the Hammersmith native was clearly unhappy with Floyd’s decision to splash him with water.
But notably for DeGale, this is not the first rivalry which has taken center stage before his return to the ring.
James DeGale almost brawled with George Groves during heated interview
Early in his career, former super middleweight champion, DeGale shared an intense rivalry with fellow former titleholder, George Groves — a teammate of his during their amateur career in the ring.
And infamously, appearing together during an interview with Sky Sports ahead of their 2011 pairing, the duo came very close to exchanging blows before even entering the ring.
Eventually clashing for the British and Commonwealth super middleweight crowns that same year, DeGale would suffer a majority decision loss over 12 rounds.
The defeat would come as the first of just three in DeGale’s career, following his loss to Eubank Jr. and an upset blemish against Caleb Truax in 2018.