By Keith Idec

If you’re wondering why super middleweights from Flint, Mich., and London will fight Saturday in Boston, it’s not because Andre Dirrell refused to go to England for another title fight.

Dirrell dropped a split decision to Carl Froch 5½ years ago in Froch’s native Nottingham, England, but that wouldn’t have prevented the talented southpaw from traveling to the United Kingdom again to box James DeGale.

“I enjoyed my time over there,” Dirrell said. “I believe I won the fight [against Froch], like I said, and it just didn't go my way, unfortunately. I don't like to judge my future fights based on past. I look forward to fighting in Britain again, in England again, the UK again, whenever that day may come. I had a lot of fans over there. I have a lot of fans over there and I enjoyed my time over there. I've been going over there since the amateurs, so I enjoy it very much. And I’m a world-class fighter, so I want to be displayed on a world-class level.

“If [the DeGale fight] was over there, if it had to be over there, then so be it. I would have [gone] over there to fight James. We are world competitors, world-class. We fight for world titles. Why should it be in your hometown every time? Why should it be in America every time? This is a world-class sport and we should treat it like one.”

The 31-year-old Dirrell (24-1, 16 KOs) and the 29-year-old DeGale (20-1, 14 KOs) will fight for the IBF super middleweight title Froch vacated at Boston University’s Agganis Arena. Their scheduled 12-round fight will be broadcast by NBC as the main event of a “Premier Boxing Champions” telecast set to start at 4:30 p.m. ET/1:30 p.m. PT.

Keith Idec covers boxing for The Record and Herald News, of Woodland Park, N.J., and BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.