Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

As it happenedended

James DeGale vs Chris Eubank Jr result: Junior knocks DeGale down twice en route to one-sided win

Relive all the action as James DeGale and Chris Eubank Jr settled their longstanding rivalry at the 02 Arena

Tom Kershaw
Sunday 24 February 2019 00:29 GMT
Comments
James DeGale v Chris Eubank Jr: Tale of the Tape

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Chris Eubank Jr has left James DeGale facing retirement after securing the finest victory of his career via a unanimous decision in their IBO super middleweight title match in London.

He had previously lost his two biggest fights, against Billy Joe Saunders and George Groves, but improved sufficiently to win an occasion DeGale said would force the loser to retire.

At 29 and with so high a profile there was little risk of that for Eubank Jr, but after his third defeat and a career in which he became the first British Olympic gold medallist to win a world title DeGale - the loser by scores of 114-112, 115-112 and 117-109 - has been left with few lucrative options to pursue.

Relive all the live action below...

Please wait a moment for the blog to load...

Eubank Senior:

Yeah I'm nervous. I hope for the best and prepare for the worst. I really don't know. Junior is brilliant from the physical point of view. Whether he can turn up and be the Chris Eubank we've seen in the past, I don't know. It's a 50/50 fight.

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:21

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:28

We're just moments away

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:29

Chris Eubank Jr is making his way out of the dressing room.

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:33

Eubank Jr:

Career-defining, absolutely, this is do-or-die. There is no return for whoever comes out of this defeated, we both know this and I've trained like an animal.

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:34

DeGale:

Legacy fight, this is what people are going to remember me for. I'm fully focused, mind, body and soul, let's go. For this fight, I'm the people's champions.

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:35

Chris Eubank Jr is making his way into the ring, and vaults over the rope before a burst of shadowboxing.

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:38

Jimmy Lennon Jr is making the in-ring announcements

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:41

Both fighters look confident. DeGale gets the loudest reception from the crowd at the 02. Here we go!

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:44

Round 1: It's a tentative start to the round, but DeGale gets through with two nice lead left-hands. 

Tom Kershaw23 February 2019 22:46

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in