By Scott Gilfoid: WBC Silver super middleweight champion James DeGale (14-1, 9 KO’s) is targeting former IBF super middleweight champion Lucian Bute (31-1, 24 KO’s) for the Summer, and DeGale feels he’s got the skills to beat him. That’s not all, though, as DeGale also sees himself as being ready to fight the likes of IBF super middleweight champion Carl Froch and WBA champion Mikkel Kessler within two fights.
DeGale said to fightnews.com “I want a name like Lucian Bute for the Summer…I would like either of them [Froch or Kessler]. I’m a former British and European champion. I think I’m on the verge of mixing it against the best. In a couple of more fights and I’ll be willing to fight one of them.”
DeGale has a fight coming up next month against the non-top 15 ranked Pablo Oscar Natalio Farias (24-2, 16 KO’s) on March 23rd at the Glow, Bluewater, Greenhithe, Kent, United Kingdom.
That’s not exactly a dangerous opponent that DeGale is fighting, and hopefully he’s wise enough to slip in some transition contenders before he faces Froch, Kessler or Bute because going from weak opposition like Farias and Fulgencio Zuniga to a fight against one of the top super middleweights in the division is going to be too much of a leap up in competition for DeGale, and he’ll up performing poorly.
Let’s be honest about DeGale’s chances at fighting any of those guys, his chances aren’t good. Bute is fighting on May 25th possibly against Jean Pascal, and if Bute does fight in the Summer, and I don’t think he will, it won’t be against an obscure fighter like DeGale.
Bute will look to fight someone that can help his career in terms of being a named fighter. Bute isn’t going to look for guys below him like DeGale and waste time fighting him. I don’t see this as being a good match-up for DeGale because Bute is too strong, too quick and too talented for him.
Froch and Kessler also won’t waste time fighting DeGale. Froch wants to fight Kessler and Andre Ward in 2013, and there’s no room for a fight against DeGale, and I’m sure that Froch wouldn’t be interested even if he had the time free on his schedule.
Kessler won’t bother fighting DeGale either because he’s got better fights out there for him. DeGale would be another Mehdi Bouadla type fight for Kessler, and he’s not going to bother at this point.
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