Pretty much. Groves is a good, solid fighter with some elite attributes and a shaky-ish chin. Froch, on the verge of retirement, had a few struggles with him early in the first fight and then stopped him. He absolutely obliterated him in their second fight. The same Groves (albeit a bit older and 'on the slide' according to some here before this fight) beat Eubanks Jr close but clear. Saunders is another at this sort of level, as shown in his close win over Eubanks Jr. Froch, despite looking like a fighting farmer, proved over his career to be a formidable champion; a tough, hard man with more intangeables than actual boxing skills. Froch was a clear level above these guys. He'd have wiped them all out handily IMO. No shame in that. MTF
I'm not sure that Froch's level was much lower than Ward's. If Groves proved he belonged in the same ring as Froch (who stopped him twice, once absolutely brutally), why does Froch not belong in the same ring as Ward (who did not stop him, or come close to, and who only beat him in a 8-4, 7-5 fight)? MTF
Yes and No: Froch was ahead by a point at the time of the KO....but I know what you mean (e.g. it wasn´t a Hearns-Duran obliteration from Rd1 onwards)
The non-heavyweight, poor-mans Vitali is what I always called Froch. Slow but not that slow. Great chin. Great notion of when to pick up the pace. Good sense of his own limitations but an even better sense of the other guys limitations.
Tony Bellew spent all week telling people not to get caught up in da hype. I guess Bellew hates Eubank too. I would be obliged if anybody could show me any Eubanks-Jr related thread where I was in here laying down shit on the guy. It never happened. I am utterly unimpressed with his sticklah. I mean.......Shane McGuigan, Barry McGuigan, utter fucking tools of the highest order, but that's just my rampant Protestantism shining through, I suppose.
Yeah but when the life bar dips below 5%... an activated gum shield restores vitality,... that's how you beat the level 12 snow - monster.
The principal objective in boxing is to knock the other man unconscious. Scorecards only become a relevant factor when that does not happen. Carl Froch absolutely seperated George Groves from his senses with a single punch. Left him looking like a human quaver, the cunt was out before he hit the floor. He obliterated him, in the boxing sense of the word. That notwithstanding, anyone who had Groves behind by just a point up to that stage should be banned from judging for life. If ever there was a classic example of judges trying to compensate for a perceived 'injustice' in the first fight, that was it. MTF
Tony Bellew has developed a canny sized mouth for a man who lost to Nathan Cleverly and got sparked out by Stephenson. A really big mouth. MTF
Im a hige Froch fan, but I don't think he was past it. Looked better than ever in his last 3 fights before that one. I think he might have underestimated him in the first fight though
Froch sparred loads with Groves, and went public with the knowledge that Groves had a bit of a dodgy chin, and that he (Froch) had knocked him over a few times in sparring. He definitely underestimated Groves in the first fight, likely on the that basis. MTF
Grew his hair too. I mean, the man no longer stands on corners, he's turned one!!! Chap looks like a greatly-surprised Vole or Mole