Froch vs. Bute 2-fight deal could have conditions that need to be met before a second fight occurs

By Boxing News - 01/12/2012 - Comments

Image: Froch vs. Bute 2-fight deal could have conditions that need to be met before a second fight occursBy William Mackay: Former WBC super middleweight champion Carl Froch’s promoter Eddie Hearn of Matchroom Sport is working to put together a 2-fight deal with IBF super middleweight champion Lucian Bute to stage two fights in 2012.

The first fight will take place on April 14th in Montreal, Canada, and the second fight will be a conditional fight that could take place in July or August in Froch’s home city of Nottingham, England. Hearn reportedly wants to make sure that Froch gets a home fight as part of the deal. However, he also wants to have the two-fight deal conditional so that if the first fight is one-sided or ends in a knockout, the second fight would no longer be needed. By doing this, Hearn will be ensuring that boxing fans aren’t forced to watch two fighters compete again after one guy got easily beaten in the previous fight.

Additionally, fan interest would likely nosedive for a second between them if the first fight ends by a knockout or a one-sided decision. So Hearns wants to make sure that both fighters can go their separate ways if the first bout isn’t a competitive match.

Hearn told the Daily Mail “Put something in the contract that says, for example, if there is a KO within six rounds, there will be no rematch. If it is a points decision wider than six rounds, there is no rematch, They will make us an offer this week, probably, and then we’ll look at the money.”

It works out well for Bute but not so well for Froch. Bute gets the home fight in the first bout and it could turn out disastrous for Froch. Bute is good at playing defense when he wants to and moves even more than Andre Ward. Froch has problems against movers and he might be forced to chase Bute around the ring all night long. That’s a fight that would favor Bute because he likes to hit and run when facing guys with power. It might be a fight similar to Bute’s bouts against Sakio Bika or Librado Andrade.



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