By Scott Gilfoid: Former WBC super middleweight champion Carl Froch and IBF super middleweight champion Lucian Bute are in negotiations for a possible two fight deal in 2012. Froch needs a big win to jump start his career and he seems to be willing to bet everything on him being able to beat Bute and take his International Boxing Federation title, even if it means fighting Bute in Montreal, Canada next. Froch loses to Bute in Montreal seven days a week, 365 days a year. He can’t win there unless he knocks the guy out.

Froch got beat badly, I mean really badly in his last fight against WBA super middleweight champion Andre Ward last month in the Super Six tournament. It was one of those basic slaughter type fights where you just sit and think to yourself ‘Man, I’m glad I’m not the one taking those painful shots from Ward.’

Froch got beat every which way you can beat and then he tried to save face afterwards by saying that two of the judges had it close. What a reach. Now instead of realizing that he’s just not made to fight talents like Ward, Andre Dirrell and Bute, Froch is pushing ahead stubbornly to take the risky fight with Bute instead of stepping back and reappraising his own talent and limitations.

I see Froch as someone that has $20 in his pocket and he’s decided to gamble it all away on the lottery instead of taking the money and buying some groceries that would be a lot more useful for him. I think the Bute fight is a dumb move for Froch if he does indeed take that fight next. I don’t mind Froch facing Bute in the future after he’s picked up a couple of important wins over lesser fighters with a similar style as Bute, but he’s barking up the wrong tree if he goes straight into that fight with Bute.

If Froch is following advice from his promoter in taking the Bute fight next, then Froch needs to stand up on his hind legs and speak out. Froch is kind of a brawler type and Bute does really well against those types of guys. This is why I think Froch needs to turn down the fight and try to knock off some of the local talent in England like George Groves and James DeGale before loading up for a Bute fight.

There’s danger there, of course, because Froch’s confidence might be at such a low point to where even mid-level fighters like Groves and DeGale can take him at this point. They may see Froch as wounded antelope and take him down if he’s not the same fighter he was before Ward. But I think Froch needs a couple of good tune-up fights before he takes on Bute and risks his career on that one or two fights.