Lucien Bute warns James DeGale: ‘I will get my belt back’

James DeGale-Lucien Bute

THE last time Lucian Bute was in Britain he took a savage hiding at the hands of hometown hero Carl Froch in Nottingham. Even considering the combatantsโ€™ reputations, the brutality of that May 2012 night was unexpected. Froch was thought to be past his best after being comprehensively decisioned by Andre Ward in his previous contest while the unbeaten Bute was considered one of boxingโ€™s most dangerous men. Five shockingly one-sided rounds later, the roles had been reversed. Belatedly rescued by the referee after being volleyed into oblivion, Bute slumped against the ropes, his IBF super-middleweight title gone, and attempted to gather his senses. It would take the best part of three years.

โ€œIt took a long time to get over that,โ€ Bute admits today. โ€œIt was difficult. It was my first loss, and I lost my belt and Iโ€™ve had doubts and injuries over the last three years. Before my last fight I took a break of 18 months. I was thinking a lot during that time. Now I feel good, I feel healthy. I have a new team and a new trainer. It will be okay, and Iโ€™m okay.โ€

He certainly looks okay. Dressed immaculately in a light blue suit that compliments his sunny complexion, and velvet loafers that positively ooze money, the Canadian is immediately charming and occasionally apologetic about his broken English. He is in London, at Arsenalโ€™s Emirates Stadium, to announce a November 28 shot at new IBF 168lb king, James DeGale. The contest will take place in Quebec. It is the young championโ€™s first defence since defeating Andre Dirrell in Boston five months ago, and he heads to his opponentโ€™s backyard – much like Bute himself three years ago – offering redemption to an ageing veteran. Bute is both grateful, and expectant.

โ€œIโ€™ve seen lots of his fights,โ€ Bute says about his latest British rival. โ€œI saw his last fight with Andre Dirrell in America. Heโ€™s a great fighter and heโ€™s developed a lot. Heโ€™s confident now, and heโ€™s a world champion now. I respect his decision to come to Canada and defend his world title against me. Itโ€™s his first defence, he didnโ€™t have to take me on, and I have respect for him for doing that. It shows that he is a great champion. But I will get my belt back.โ€

Even though Bute will enjoy home advantage, itโ€™s likely he will be a longer underdog than Froch was back in 2012. The reasons for this are obvious if youโ€™ve followed Buteโ€™s career since that disaster. He has fought just three times. Unsure of the right path he wandered into the light-heavyweight division and looked gun shy while being handily outpointed by countryman Jean Pascal early last year.

โ€œMy weight is 168lbs,โ€ Bute declares. โ€œIt always has been. Iโ€™m a super-middleweight, like always. I should have stayed here. Going to light-heavyweight was too much for me.โ€

That contest against Pascal was a huge event at the Bell Center in Montreal, where the support was split between the countrymen. Against DeGale โ€“ at the brand new Centre Videotron in Quebec City โ€“ Bute will be, at the opening bell at least, the crowdโ€™s undisputed hero.

โ€œIt excites me,โ€ Bute says about the contestโ€™s location. Heโ€™s smiling now, and no longer straining to break the language barrier. โ€œWhen this fight was announced I saw the arena for the first time and itโ€™s a great arena. Itโ€™s new, and itโ€™s a nice place. On November 28, to fight in front of maybe 15,000 people, it will not be easy for James. The fans will support me. They will encourage me. They will push me. They will be there for me, not James. It will be an explosive night.โ€

So whatโ€™s changed? Why should we believe that Bute โ€“ now 35 and at an age where improvement is almost impossible โ€“ can return to the form that saw him enter Nottingham on the back of a 30-0 record, five years as IBF king, and nine successful defences? Bute understands why British fans may question him. But after the loss to Pascal, the Romania-born southpaw took stock, and changed his team. In came Howard Grant, a 1988 Olympian who never quite fulfilled his potential as a professional โ€“ he lost to Billy Schwer in Stevenage in 1994 โ€“ but is now blossoming as a trainer.

โ€œIโ€™ve been with Howard for six months and heโ€™s helped a lot,โ€ Bute reports. Certainly in his most recent outing โ€“ a four-round hammering of Andrea Di Luisa in August โ€“ some of Buteโ€™s old spark had returned. โ€œHoward has pushed me to be more aggressive, and to move my head, and to push my hands together. I will be prepared for the fight [against DeGale].โ€

Ghosts of the past will always haunt Bute, but by coming back to Britain, heโ€™s faced his demons head on.

โ€œI donโ€™t want to make excuses about that Froch fight,โ€ he says defiantly. โ€œI lost. He was the better fighter on the night but things are different now. Iโ€™m refreshed, whatโ€™s done is done, I look ahead now. I am very confident that once again I will become world champion.โ€

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