Chris Eubank Jr claimed a thoroughly deserved unanimous decision victory over longtime adversary James DeGale, finally putting to bed a grudge that had been festering for years following a well-documented sparring session.
DeGale nevertheless began the fight in promising fashion with an assertive display in a cagey first round, tagging the favourite twice with left hands before Eubank fired back furiously in the second, dropping the former IBF super-middleweight in the second after connecting with a destructive combination which preceded a clash of heads.
The fight became increasingly messy and scrappy as a predatory Eubank struggled to pin down a slippery DeGale, who was showcasing decent defensive skills but failed to produce any meaningful work of his own throughout the middle rounds.
It was a largely toothless performance from ‘Chunky’ – someone who has endured significant struggles with injuries in recent years – as he could not seem to get a rhythm going and was consistently forced to spoil on the inside after invariably overreaching with his punches.
Another powerful left hook sent DeGale down again in the tenth, who by this point looked visibly shaken in the face of Eubank’s unrelenting forward momentum, although despite landing a thunderous right uppercut in the final round the Brighton native was unable to consummate his in-ring dominance with a stoppage.
However, by probably sending a former world champion into retirement, the general impression is that Eubank’s performance represents a marked improvement from his last high-profile showing against Groves, and has also reinvigorated his world championship prospects in the process at super-middleweight.
Article by: Navi Singh
Follow Navi on Twitter at: @DarkMan________