DeGale vs Dirrell goes to purse bids

So after the press conference a couple of weeks back announcing DeGale fighting at the O2 in April for the IBF and all the noise about trying to make Groves-DeGale....

Dirrell has turned down all Matchroom's offers and the fight has gone to purse bids. 

I would have thought the chances are that DeGale will now have to go to America. 
Dirrell is an Al Haymon fighter with all the backing that entails. 

There were noises that the April O2 bill with DeGale and Lee Selby may have ended up as a PPV event. 

That's the only way I could see them coming up with a large enough purse bid, especially as they must have been making Dirrell strong offers, 50/50 split for the vacant belt and all that....

So.....

How do you see this panning out?
Do you reckon Matchroom/Sky will go big on this or will DeGale be hung out to dry and find himself fighting in California on an NBC show?
How would you rate DeGale's chances if he has to go to America?

Normally I'd say they'd let him go but with the logical Gloves rematch on the horizon, who knows? Maybe Hearn will speculate to accumulate and go all in on DeGale to get a strap on him, setting up the (as big as they can make it) rematch with Groves.

I hope they can stick it on the Selby bill. I was intending on buying tickets to that when they go on sale.

Maybe Eddie doesn't want the Dirrell fight as it could negatively impact on Groves v DeGale.

Matchroom have had success with domestic match ups where they hold a lot of the cards so maybe the Dirrell fight doesn't happen.

It's not like Brook where there was only Khan as an opponent and that fight wasn't happening at the time for various reasons.

Depends on how much they've offered Dirrell, could be he's running scared and thinking Degale could beat him or it could be he's seen how some of the judgings been and doesn't want to take a chance. Could be any number of reasons really.

Can someone clear it up for me though, if it's gone to purse bids does that mean it has to happen unless one of them forfeits the right to fight for the belt???

Can someone clear it up for me though, if it's gone to purse bids does that mean it has to happen unless one of them forfeits the right to fight for the belt???

No, because Eddie Hearn is an evil Frak who gangbangs midgets for fun whilst they're dressed up as bears. It is blindingly obvious he's doing everything he can not to make this fight happen because you know - he's in the business of not making fights happen that make him money.

That's what Strongy told me anyway.

Can't see them selling out the O2 against Ramirez...

Derbymanc wrote:Can someone clear it up for me though, if it's gone to purse bids does that mean it has to happen unless one of them forfeits the right to fight for the belt???

Essentially, yes. 

The purse bids get opened and the winning bidder has to declare the date and venue within a week or two. 
If Matchroom win it will be April at the O2. 
If not, America at some point. 

Maybe Mayweather undercard?

Can't see DeGale backing out but Dirrell might do if he really doesn't want to come over here. 
And after the Froch fight and some of the scorecards lately.... Who would blame him?

So as long as Degale gets a bid in then he'll be fighting for a world title?

That's good then. I can't fault anyone not wanting to come over here after some of the decisions lately, hopefully someone will come out and say it and maybe give the officials and promoters a kick up the ass to get there game on point.

If the real prize is DeGale v Groves then maybe Hearn shouldn't want Dirrell too much.  I thought Froch did enough to win but Dirrell seemed more than capable of holding his own when he actually engaged.  I had a sense that Dirrell could have beaten Froch but was either initially intimidated by his opponent or the occasion.

There is a possibility, if Direll hasn't slipped too much, that he might be the 3rd best SMW out there.  He seems to have a few good attributes and no obvious weaknesses, so whilst there are some question marks and DeGale could quite easily win, he's a live danger to DeGale v Groves happening.

That said, I would like to see them fight.

Credit to degale for taking this. Easier routes to a world title than andre Dirrell... Assuming its a dirrell that's now focussed. As others have said after the froch fight, where plenty thought he was jobbed, you can't blame him for being reluctant to come to the uk.

Interesting fight assuming it comes off. We'll see how chunky copes against a guy with faster hands than him.

.... Dirrell's problems are between the ears. I haven't seen him since his comeback, but in shape and focussed I always thought stylistically he was the one threat to ward. If he's serious about his career it's good for the division to have him back as a player.

milkyboy wrote:.... Dirrell's problems are between the ears. I haven't seen him since his comeback, but in shape and focussed I always thought stylistically he was the one threat to ward. If he's serious about his career it's good for the division to have him back as a player.

I completely agree about Dirrell. Although if Degale can beat Dirrell and Groves I'd love to see him in with Ward next year too, might pose a big threat.

If Dirrell shows up mentally and in shape and beats Degale. If Degale's held his own is it still a backwards step for him or a step forward (Like Groves/Froch?)

Derbymanc wrote:If Dirrell shows up mentally and in shape and beats Degale. If Degale's held his own is it still a backwards step for him or a step forward (Like Groves/Froch?)

If DeGale loses it can't be considered a forward step unless it's a good performance against either Ward or Froch. As good as Dirrell might be, he's recognised as being around the same place as DeGale career-wise, so losing to him would set Degale back.

Dirrell is not focused on fighting anymore. Expect him to earn what he can from this fight and then go back to domestic living until the money runs out. Wouldnt be surprised if he won the fight anyway. Hes so quick.

DeGale would beat this guy. Late stoppage I reckon

GO CHUNKY!!!

Really interesting fight to ponder. Can't decide with their styles whether it'll be a good watch or a stinker. Degale's used to being the quicker, more slippery guy than his opponent, wonder how he'll get on when he hasn't got those advantages. But think Degale can be relied upon to stand up to punishment and show a big heart, whereas the lines are a bit blurred with Dirrell.

A slightly superior talent perhaps against a guy who might just be a little more committed and hungry. All credit to whoever pulls it out as I think it's going to be a close one.

Whilst I am not ordering the Team Chunky T shirt just yet I am fast warming to him. Think he got really disheartened under Hennessy, a former olympic challenger reduced to fighting in shopping centres and night clubs must take the wind out of your sails. Think you could see at the Wembley show the penny had dropped and he realised that the route toa world title was open to him, if he put a bit of excitement into things, and whilst the stoppage was premature he genuinely tried to step on the gas once he had his opponent going.

As Chris has said Dirrell is yet to convince us he has the heart for a fight or is willing to go into the trenches to get it done. Think if DeGale jumps on him and tries to make things hot from the start he might just find Dirrell goes into his shell.

Not sure why Andre Dirrell's being labelled as having 'no heart'. IIRC he suffered a brain injury and has now returned to within one victory of becoming world champion.

A self diagnosed brain injury which was the result of a piece of acting Dariusz Michalczewski would have been proud of, you would not get a licence had he had the kind of injury he lied about.

Dirrell was interviewed and said he would be happy to come to the UK... I think his team dont want the fight yet..  I guess maybe he is looking for big pay days and while its a title fight its a potential damaging loss and not a massive pay day...  I don't think Hearn would let the fight slip over to the USA so easy.

Hammersmith harrier wrote:A self diagnosed brain injury which was the result of a piece of acting Dariusz Michalczewski would have been proud of, you would not get a licence had he had the kind of injury he lied about.

I would say the one weakness I see in Dirrell is that he does not seem to like to get stuck in, Against Froch he wanted none of it and was on his toes all night, holding allot as well, against Abraham he was boxing him allot, but as he tired and Abraham was walking him down he was really running and when he got clipped while he was down, he took it with both hands to get out of a fight he may well have ended up getting stopped in.

That being said as a Degale supporter I would have prefered to see him in with Froch as I think the style would have worked better for him, I think Dirrell will be a very hard fight for him and if its in the USA I would say he would be the underdog.... cant see it though.

Your a Degale fan Tunes? I never knew

Very intriguing fight as both fighters are very similar. Dirrell is the probably better boxer and the better athlete but degale seems to be on the up and has more intangibles to his game he can fight different ways but hasn't had the experience against world class opposition like dirrell has

Expect this to be a very cagey affair with not a lot of action last time someone didn't engage degale he ended up losing to groves. Tricky fight if its made and dangerous for both

I just watched the dirrell Abraham punch again to see if my memory was playing up. Firstly, I'm not sure why in the 11th round of a fight he was winning he'd take the dq... I'm struggling to see that an Abraham win by stoppage was looking likely.

There is a seeming slight delay, where he sits back against the ropes before Keeling over. I can see where the conspiracy theories come from. But.... He took a full free hit on the jaw, from a noted puncher, that he didn't see, whilst he was sat on a*se. If it didn't knock him out and he was faking,  he has a great chin. If he has a great chin, then he had no fear of losing the fight.

It could be that he took the foul and figured he'd been disadvantaged and milked it. But do you know, I'm not sure I blame him if he did. Abraham was a disgrace but its dirrell who gets sh*t for it.

Re gerry's point. My comments re what's going on between his ears, is not questioning his concussion or degree of it, during or after the fight, it's what's happened since. He took 18 months to fight again initially. Let's say that was recovery time. But if he was ok to fight then and given the all clear. Why were there gaps of roughly 15-18 months between both of his next two fights?

Anyone who thinks Dirrell's knockout by Arthur was legit needs to see a shrink...

... Has yours got any spare slots or are his hands too full with you hermy?

I agree Milky, I don't know why Dirrell gets the abuse for Abraham taking a cheap shot. It was unsportsmanlike, but AA was a cretin and deserved to lose. It's the same as the Mayweather/Ortiz situation.