James DeGale - 'I'd take a 50% pay cut to fight on the BBC'

Olympic gold medallist James DeGale got a bit of much needed national exposure yesterday when he appeared as a guest on Victoria Derbyshire’s show on Radio 5 Live.

Whatever one thinks of DeGale, he does come across as very sincere, naïve almost in how honestly he answers points put to him. I remember the always truculent Garry Richardson needlessly embarrassing him on an edition of Sportsweek just after his Beijing triumph.

DeGale opined that he could command a million pound professional deal. Richardson, never a man to refuse an opportunity to rain on someone’s parade, basically told him he couldn’t. DeGale, somewhat surprised, simply deferred to the older man’s point.

In yesterday's interview, Derbyshire pressed him as to how much he was earning for his upcoming fight with BoxRec forum poster and British super-middleweight champion, Paul Smith. DeGale was clearly uncomfortable but then said ’90 grand’. Not only that, he said he’d take a 50% pay cut to have his fights shown on the BBC.

In the current climate of utterly venal Premiership footballers and bankers who are rewarded for failure and with no apparent sense of honour or decency, DeGale’s attitude was refreshing.

Here is an abridged transcript of a few of his musings.

On TV coverage of boxing:

I’ll take a pay cut to be on ITV or BBC, believe me. I’d take probably to get on BBC prime time a 50% pay cut.

Darts is alright but we need boxing back on telly.  I look back when I was 8 or 9 we used to have big fight live with Benn and Eubank.

I thought to be honest that ITV or BBC would come back into it but obviously they ain’t and I think they should. Apart from football boxing is probably the sport we do best in.

All I get on my facebook and email is 'Why aren’t you on the BBC?' But if I win this British title in style you never know. I’m not putting the dairy on Audley (I have absolutely no idea what this means - Ed.) but he might have something to do with it.

I would like the majority of the nation to watch me and on Sky they don’t get the opportunity to watch me.

On his next fight with Paul Smith:

I’m not best friends with Paul Smith but with his younger brother we travelled the world together…me and his brother ain’t best friends and we’ll put that aside for 36 minutes and go to war. It’s a business, not just a sport.

This is a proper step up, best super-middleweight in the country, rated with all the organisations but I feel I’m ready so now I’ve got to put up and shut up.

Training’s going great. I’m ahead of schedule six weeks off the fight and I could do ten rounds already.  I'm going into the lion's den, he's a popular boy up there, sells tickets but I like to think I’ve got my own fans up there.

On being booed on his professional debut:

Believe it or not I’m a bit sensitive and the boos hurt me.  I went back to the gym and worked on the basics and I think from my second fight I’ve been spot on but it did hurt me a little bit.

Jim (McDonnell, trainer) boos me now when I spar!

On super-middleweight rival and Commonwealth champion George Groves:

Me and ugly kid? It was meant to be for December 11th but he came up with a counter offer that was a pay cut to me and I think this was a nice way of him saying no. But sooner rather than later hopefully. ‘Nobody knows Groves’ that’s his name. He’s living off my name, calling me out constantly I don’t know if it’s a publicity stunt or what.

On Haye v Harrison:

Haye is going to knock him out within six but if it goes past six Audley’s got a good chance. Haye’s got a stamina problem. But there’s something in Audley’s eyes this time…he looks hungry…there’s something there.

On his own relationship with David Haye:

Me and David don’t really see eye to eye, I don’t really speak to him too much. When he first opened his promotional company he came down to my gym and was looking to sign me or Groves.  I went to the Olympics, got the gold medal and he signed Georgie Groves, my enemy.

Yeah, basically he don’t like me and we don’t get along. He also said a couple of silly comments at the Olympics saying I wouldn’t make it as a professional and so on.

On Ricky Hatton:

Sad, obviously, his situation but I can see how these things happen. He gave his life to boxing, gave up and doesn’t know what to do with his time. He’s making up for lost time but in the wrong way, I suppose.

I’ve never been offered it but it’s a social drug now. I’ll never go near it.

On his amateur rival, the late Darren Sutherland:

He moved from Ireland to London with Frank Maloney and I heard all different rumours. Boxing is a lonely game, he left his girlfriend behind, he was living in a one-bedroom flat.

Boxing was always on his mind but you need a happy medium – boxing maybe got to him too much. Sad, world at his feet, so, so talented and would have gone so far.