By Ian S Palmer
There’s a Super Middleweight Championship rematch at the Hard Rock Casino in Las Vegas this Saturday, April 7th when IBF Champion Caleb Truax of America defends his title against James DeGale of England. Truax upset DeGale by majority decision back on December 9th to lift the crown. The 12-round bout can be seen live in the U.S. on Showtime while fans in the UK can catch all of the action live on BoxNation. DeGale’s previous outing was in January, 2017 when he fought to a majority draw with WBC Champion Badou Jack. Truax’s previous fight was in August of last year when he stopped KeAndrae Leatherwood in the 10th round.
The 32-year-old DeGale won the vacant IBF title in May of 2015 when he beat Andre Dirrell by unanimous decision and then defended it against Lucian Bute by unanimous decision in November of 2015. He’s a southpaw and former 2008 Olympic gold medalist who became the first boxer in British history to win both an Olympic gold medal as well as a pro world championship. He climbs into the ring with a record of 23-2-1 with 14 Kos, but was outworked and out punched in the first fight with Truax.
DeGale stands 6-feet tall with a 74-inch reach and has fought 183 rounds since turning pro in 2009. His current knockout ratio is 54 per cent an d he’s not known as a big puncher. Other than facing Truax, Jack, Dirrell and Bute he’s also beaten the likes of Paul Smith, Marco Antonio Periban and Fulgencio Zuniga. His other defeat was a 12-round majority decision against fellow Englishman George Groves in May of 2011. DeGale’s a solid boxer with good speed, decent power and good chin and but needs to work hard every round to be successful..
The 34-year-old Truax of Osseo, Minnesota stands six-feet tall and possesses a 73-inch reach, which means he’s the same height as DeGale with a minimal one-inch reach disadvantage. He has a record of 29-3-2 and lost a world title bid to Daniel Jacobs in 2015 when he was stopped in the 12th round. Truax’s other defeats were also to former world champions as he dropped a unanimous 10-round decision to Jermain Taylor in 2012 and was stopped in the first round by Anthony Dirrell in April, 2016.
Truax has fought 215 rounds since turning pro in 2007 and has a current knockout ratio of 53 per cent. His draws came against Ossie Duran in 2014 and Phil Williams in 2011. He’s fought a few of other good pros in Antwun Echols, Matt Vanda, Don George and Derek Ennis, but none of them are in the elite category. Truax has the ability to give anybody a tough time of it as he proved in December, especially if they’re not at the top of the game. He’s been stopped twice, but doesn’t really have a weak chin.
He’s generally competitive in his bouts against Grade A boxers, but up until beating DeGale he typically fell just short. He’s definitely a handful though and also underrated. DeGale should be better prepared this time around and he may have been slightly out of form is in their first fight since he underwent shoulder surgery following his draw with Badou Jack in January. But, Truax also knows what to expect and how to beat DeGale and should have a lot of confidence considering the outcome of their tilt last December.
Prediction…
Truax was simply hungrier than DeGale in the first fight and earned the victory. It’s now up to DeGale to prove he’s as hungry as Truax was. I think DeGale’s just a bit better overall when it comes to boxing skills and if he puts the effort in he should regain his title.
