By Simon Hirst: Photo credit: Tom Casino/Showtime – This weekend sees Britain’s Carl Froch take on the tough, durable veteran Glenn Johnson for a place in the Super Six Final against the undefeated Andre Ward. Both have had different paths entering this contest with Johnson coming off some losses to Dawson and Cloud before knocking out Green when placed in the tournament after pull outs. Froch on the other hand is coming off a long streak of tough fights against Pascal, Taylor, Dirrell, Kessler and Abraham in which he has compiled a 4-1 record.

Both fighters are confident that they will win the fight, but the favourite for the fight would be Froch. Critics slam the defence of Froch, but there is no questioning the chin of Froch, in fact the only question you may ask of such a chin is ‘What is it made of?!’ Froch is a good puncher, but has failed to stop anybody since Jermain Taylor.

Johnson on the other hand is coming off a KO win over Allan Green. Green is a fighter who looks great against all but the very best. Three losses to Miranda, Ward and Johnson ended his Super Middleweight career. Previous to the stoppage, Johnson has lost five world title fights on the bounce against Cloud, Dawson twice, Woods and Tarver. He has won all other bouts in-between, but history points to Johnson coming up short against the very best.

Froch is definitely cut from that cloth after such a gruesome gauntlet. After a solid amateur background, Froch was seen as a big puncher in the division, known for his gung ho approach and all out wars such as his fights with Kessler and Pascal, but in his most recent fight against Abraham, he produced a superb performance in what many were billing a 50-50 fight to shut out Abraham with pure boxing.

Johnson is seen as a guy who will make you work for your money as he really puts a shift in the ring. He is there to be beat, but won’t lie down easily as he has only been stopped once by a young Hopkins in 1997.

The outcome of the fight will mainly depend on a few things. Will Froch’s wars have catched up with him? The answer is probably not after his performance with Abraham. Add to the fact that Froch looks after himself outside the ring should mean Froch will be fresh and prepared. Will Glen Johnson show his age? The answer is maybe. The man is in terrific shape for 42 years old and to be fighting at this level shows how good he is. However, against a fresh, hungry and talented Froch, there is always a worry that his standard may dip due to age. You may argue his win over Green painted over signs of aging, but against a guy who is used to fighting top calibre fighters on a regular basis, that paint may strip.

Other questions are can they hurt each other? Johnson knocked out Green so his power should not be underestimated. However, Froch has a granite chin so Froch should be able to take a few of his best. Froch has good power, but has not been able to stop anyone at world class level with the exception of Taylor. The answer in this will depend on what style Froch adopts and how often he can hit bombs on Johnson.

The winner of this should be with the favourite. Froch has good boxing skills, can go to war with an superb chin to back him up and has decent power. The only way Johnson can upset the odds is by pressuring Froch, not letting him settle and beating him to the punch. It will be interesting, but expect Froch to prevail with the most likely result being a wide points decision around the tune of 118-110.