DeGale wins bare-knuckle debut, says BKFC not for him

James DeGale, the 39-year-old Olympic gold medallist and two-time IBF super-middleweight champion, made a winning but bruising transition to bareknuckle fighting on Saturday night, defeating Australia’s Matty Floyd by unanimous decision at the AO Arena in Manchester. The five two-minute round contest, held under the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship banner, ended with judges scoring the bout 48-43, 48-43 and 47-44 in DeGale’s favour after a scrappy, foul-marred contest.

The fight, DeGale’s first competitive appearance since his 2019 loss to Chris Eubank Jr., was dominated by clinches, repeated rule breaches and visible damage to both men. Referee intervention was frequent: Floyd was penalised multiple times and lost three points overall for infractions that included a headbutt and an apparent headlock, while DeGale was also docked a point. At the end of the opening round, Floyd’s headbutt nearly provoked an all-out brawl between corners before order was restored and the fight continued.

DeGale, who retired from professional boxing in 2019 with a 25-3 record and who captured Olympic gold in Beijing in 2008, acknowledged the stark differences between the two sports. “It’s...