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The winner of May 31's Carl Froch vs George Groves rematch will potentially have another big All-UK showdown to look forward to in a mandatory defense, as Sky Sports' Ringside reported today that James DeGale and Brandon Gonzales have been ordered to meet in an IBF eliminator bout.
DeGale confirmed via Facebook that he had agreed to an eliminator. The only loss on his pro record of 18-1 (12 KO) came to Groves in 2011, when the former amateur rivals met in a closely-contested grudge match, Groves winning a debatable (but not robbery) majority decision.
Since that time, DeGale has split with former promoter Frank Warren, and taken his game to Channel 5, where he's fought under the Hennessy Sports banner. A matchup against either Froch or Groves would surely take place on Sky, if not on Sky Box Office.
That said, Gonzales (18-0-1, 10 KO) would be no pushover, and certainly no one to overlook if the fight is made. The 29-year-old American is trained by Virgil Hunter, and most believed he got the short end of the stick in an HBO-televised draw with Thomas Oosthuizen in June 2013. Neither DeGale nor Gonzales have exactly been fighting the cream of the crop, but they both look like top 10-type super middleweights at the moment.
If the fight goes down, who would you expect to win, keeping in mind also that DeGale would likely have home field advantage?