George Groves Out of December 9 Fight With Hand Injury, DeGale Still Headlining

BBC Sport reports that British and Commonwealth super middleweight champion George Groves has withdrawn from his scheduled December 9 fight in Liverpool, which was to be part of a double main event bill with rival James DeGale also in action.

Groves (14-0, 11 KO) has a hand injury suffered in camp. He last fought on November 5, stopping Paul Smith in two rounds.

"I'm really gutted as I was coming along nicely in training. The injury is a setback as I wanted to end the year with four good wins. I'm sorry that my fans won't be able to see me in action, but I'll be back early next year and ready to kick off 2012 with a bang as I continue towards further titles."

DeGale (11-1, 8 KO) will still be headlining that evening on BoxNation, as he faces 34-year-old Spaniard Jose Maria Guerrero. DeGale will be defending his WBO Inter-continental trinket, but not the European title he won on October 15 against Piotr Wilczewski.

Guerrero (29-2-1, 11 KO) has a very empty career record and on paper should be no real challenge for the talented DeGale, 25. Guerrero's biggest-ever fight came in 2005, when he faced and lost to Mario Veit in Germany.