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James DeGale or George Groves - who had the better career?
James DeGale will return from a six-year layoff to headline a Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) show this weekend.
The former world champion will take on Matt Floyd in Manchester, live on DAZN, in his first fight since 2019.
DeGale had a glittering professional career that spanned a decade after striking gold as an amateur at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
Yet he is arguably best remembered for his bitter rivalry with George Groves. The super middleweight pair despised each other and shared the ring twice before going on to win world titles.
But who had the better career? Ahead of DeGale's comeback on Saturday night, let's try and answer that question.
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Head-to-head record
The best place to start is reflecting on how they fared against one another.
The famous feud began in 2006 when DeGale and Groves clashed in the amateurs. There was very little to split the two men as the fight when to the judges' scorecards, but it was Groves who got the nod as he earned the bragging rights over his domestic rival.
Five years later, they would do it all again inside a professional ring at the O2 Arena. This time the British and Commonwealth super middleweight belts were on the line, and there was plenty of bad blood in the build-up.
DeGale was adamant he had not lost their fight fight and vowed to exact revenge in the rematch, while Groves did all he could to get under his opponent's skin.
DeGale was the favourite after making the more eye-catching start to his professional career but Groves had master tactician Adam Booth in his corner.
Neither man wanted to make a mistake as the fight developed into a tactical affair. That suited Groves as he pinched rounds by boxing smartly and keeping DeGale at bay.
DeGale finished strongly and both men raised their arms aloft at the final bell, believing they had done enough to secure victory. Once again, it was Groves who was awarded the majority decision win as he moved to 2-0 over DeGale.
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Amateur pedigree
Groves beat Degale in the amateurs and won two consecutive ABA titles in 2006 and 2007.
But on the global stage, it was DeGale who outshone his fellow Londoner.
DeGale was selected for the 2006 Commonwealth Games and returned home from Melbourne with a bronze medal.
Two years later he went to the Olympics as part of a strong British team that included Billy Joe Saunders and David Price.
DeGale was not expected to go all the way but that's exactly what he did as he won gold in the middleweight division. His surprise victory kickstarted his career ahead of turning professional in early 2009.
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High-profile fights
DeGale had several major fights in his career but had to go on the road for most of his opportunities. Groves managed to sell out Wembley and became more of a household name on British shores.
His two fights with Carl Froch will live long in the memory. The first ended in controversial fashion, with Groves stopped on his feet when he was ahead on the scorecards. A rematch was arranged for Wembley Stadium and 80,000 fans flocked to London to watch Froch knock out Groves with the best right hand of his career in the eighth round.
Groves would go on to win his world title in a different football stadium in 2017 when he beat Fedor Chudinov at Bramall Lane, and he finished off his career with domestic dust-ups against Chris Eubank Jr and Callum Smith.
DeGale never got the chance to trade blows with Froch, but he did win his world title in impressive fashion when he travelled over to the US to outpoint Andre Dirrell. His first defence was also on away turf as he beat Lucian Bute in Canada.
His final fight came against Eubank Jr when he was well beaten at the O2 Arena, and he may regret not having more domestic grudge matches to raise his profile.
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World title reigns
DeGale and Groves had very similar reigns when they eventually got their hands on championship gold.
DeGale won a world title first against Dirrell and made two successful defences before attempting to unify the super middleweight division when he took on fellow titlist Badou Jack.
Their epic battle ended in a draw which appeared to take something out of DeGale as he slipped to a shock defeat by Caleb Truax in his next outing. He regained his belt in the rematch but then vacated it after deciding not to defend it against his mandatory challenger.
Meanwhile, Groves claimed the WBA super middleweight strap two years after DeGale had climbed to the top of the mountain, and he also made two defences to earn himself a place in the Word Boxing Super Series final.
His reign came to an end in emphatic fashion as he was stopped by Callum Smith, and that proved to be Groves' last fight before hanging up his gloves.
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Knockout losses
Looking at their overall records, there is little to split DeGale and Groves. DeGale finished 25-3-1, while Groves ended 28-4.
But there was a difference in the manner of their defeats.
Groves was stopped on three occasions, twice by Froch and then by Smith in his final outing.
DeGale always heard the final bell in each of his three losses, although he was dropped on multiple occasions by Eubank Jr.
This indicates DeGale had the better chin, while it could be argued Groves was the bigger puncher by virtue of him winning 20 of his fights by knockout compared to DeGale's 15.
Who had the better career?
It really is a close call. Ultimately, both men achieved their dream of winning a world title and they were involved in some of the biggest fights in British boxing along the way.
But the edge may have to go to Groves. Beating his arch-rival twice tips the scale in his favour, while his rivalry with Froch is still spoken about to this day, even though he came out on the wrong side of it.
DeGale was never able to find another dance partner quite like Groves and that led to him slipping under the radar at times over the years.
However, this weekend, at the age of 39, he could remind fans that he remains a special talent if he can put on a show on his BKFC debut against Matt Floyd.
Watch James DeGale vs Matt Floyd live on DAZN
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