Wednesday 11 January 2017 17:17, UK
Floyd Mayweather's support for Badou Jack will not serve as a distraction for James DeGale, says Sky Sports expert Paul Smith.
James DeGale deserves to be on a big stage. He's an Olympic gold medallist, he's a world champion and he's going for his second world title now. If he wins that, he's definitely big time, but he's always trained for the big stage. He is a top fighter and they perform at the very top.
I think he would be a fool if he felt the pressure of Floyd Mayweather sitting there watching. It doesn't really matter who is watching you. Mayweather is an important boxing man, he's an important fighter - probably the best of our generation - but he's just a normal man.
You're not fighting against Mayweather, you're fighting against Badou Jack. Don't let the fact that he's sitting ringside get to you. He cannot influence the fight or change the fight, all he can do is want Jack to win, because it's his fighter. I think DeGale and his team are too experienced to let that get to them.
I think he would be a fool if he felt the pressure of Floyd Mayweather sitting there watching. It doesn't really matter who is watching you.
James has improved a hell of a lot since our fight. If any fighter hasn't improved in six years, they need to pack it in, and he's come on a hell of a lot under Jim McDonnell. There are not too many people who've had the opportunity to exploit any of DeGale's weaknesses. George Groves beat him, but Groves knew DeGale inside out.
Anyone that fights him, the first thing you have to deal with is the awkwardness. Getting someone to spar like DeGale, there are not many people that can do it. He gets inside and wants to throw a lot of punches, he's not negative. He might not have the best chin in the world, but who knows, because a lot of fighters struggle to land clean shots on him.
The Groves defeat brought him down a peg or two and made him realise he's not invincible, he's not this world-beater that he thought he was at that time. But he's certainly made up for it after that loss. He's obviously a lot better than when he lost to Groves, as he's proven by becoming a world champion. He's got an exciting style, he's a good boxer, an Olympic gold medallist, and has improved definitely. That loss probably did him the world of good.
If he wins this, he's No 1. I do believe the best super-middleweight in the division is Gilberto Ramirez, although he's not on everyone's radar just yet. But on merit alone and achievements, if DeGale wins this fight, he's No 1, and he deserves it as well.
Watch James DeGale v Badou Jack in a unification fight from the Barclays Center, New York, live on Sky Sports 1, 2am, Sunday, January 15.
