By Scott Gilfoid: Rob McCracken, the trainer for IBF/WBA super middleweight champion Carl Froch (32-2, 23 KO’s), doesn’t see another repeat of Froch shoving challenger George Groves (19-1, 15 KO’s) before they face each other in the ring on May 31st at the Wembley Stadium, Wembley, London, United Kingdom.
McCracken thinks Froch used that tactic as a way of motivating himself for the fight, and that he doesn’t see him using that tactic again. Besides, he feels that the two fighters will be kept separated from now on.
Froch shoved Groves at their pre-fight press conference last Monday at Wembley Stadium when Groves turned towards Froch for the traditional face off. Froch wouldn’t turn around to face him. Instead, Froch shoved Groves.
“Groves is saying things to him in his ear. There is only so much people want to listen that…That’s his [Froch] way of psyching himself up,” McCraken said to ITV. “I think that will be the end of that. I don’t think there will be anymore too close quarters between Carl and Groves. I think that’s the best thing because they can sort it out on May 31st.”
That’s nice to know that Froch won’t be shoving Groves again before the fight, but what happens with the face offs that generally occur? Does this mean that there won’t be any face offs between the two fighters during the entire run up to the fight? If not, then what’s going to guarantee that Froch doesn’t shove Groves again when he follows instructions to stand for the face off?
Froch’s promoter Eddie Hearn needs to decide on what he wants to do in terms of the face offs, because you can’t have Froch choosing not to do the face off and then shoving Groves when he’s just doing his job to try and promoter in the rematch. Froch needs to step back mentally and see the big picture of what Groves is trying to accomplish. He’s doing his part to help get fans interested in facing off with Froch.
If Froch doesn’t want any face offs for whatever reason, then he needs to tell Hearn so that he can pass the word along to the much younger 25-year-old Groves that there won’t be any face offs during the press conferences or at the weigh-in. It’s a pity though, because it’s going to make it less interesting if you can’t even get the two fighters near each other without Froch getting bent out of shape about it.
We saw David Haye and Dereck Chisora being kept apart for their fight a couple of years ago, and I think it took away from the build up to the fight. If we’re going to have Froch and Groves kept apart for the build up to this fight, then they might as well just telephone conference calls then having actual press conferences. It’s ridiculous. If the fighters are going to be kept apart then they might as well just set up a skype situation and have them talk that way because the press conferences will be pretty much useless.
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