By Jay McIntyre: An animosity undimmed by time will flare up in the ring on Saturday May 31st at Wembley Stadium when Carl “The Cobra” Froch (32-2, 23 KO’s) and “Saint” George Groves (19-1, 15 KO’s) lock horns for the IBF and WBA super middleweight titles a second time. Their first showdown in Manchester on November 23rd, 2013 proved to be an entertaining war, but it easily could have been a one-sided drubbing. Many questioned if George Groves belonged in the same ring as Carl Froch since the depth of talent on his resume was rather sparse.
That wasn’t the case, as Groves proved the doubters wrong and showed up in top form. He humbled the defending champion with a first round knockdown and was boxing his ears off for much of the fight. By round nine, however, The Cobra struck back and wouldn’t let up. The referee interceded while Groves was still defending himself, and this stoppage drew the ire of many fans. A fight that impressive didn’t deserve such an unceremonious stoppage, and the “what if’s?” instantly began to circulate. The fans were acrimonious because people need closure, and as much as we hate to admit it, we crave it in our daily lives. In this respect, our world is no different from the world of sports. The unresolved, simply put, bothers us.
And so the IBF ordered a rematch.
You would be hard-pressed to find two boxers that have more reason to fight one another than these two men. In addition to the obligatory ‘trash talking’ and ego bruising that most boxers subject one another to prior to a fight, both are eager to pick up where they left off at the midway point of the ninth round. Everyone wants to know: who is the better man? The truth is that there can be only one. (yes, that’s a Highlander reference).
Their First Fight:
Part of what made their first fight such a barn-burner was the constant rate at which punches were thrown. While Froch remained inert for long periods of time, Groves went to work, and when Froch finally unleashed himself, Groves turtled to weather the storm. The moments of Groves’ success were far more numerous than those of Froch and the fight seemed to be one sided on the scorecards of most observers. But scorecards only matter if the fight goes to a decision.
The knockdown in the first round did remind us that, even as an experienced champion, Froch is more brawler than boxer and paid for his lack of technical acumen in the ring. That is not to say that he is all brawler and not a boxer, but the former trait clearly tends to override the latter. Sammy Davis Jr. coined the phrase: “I gotta be me”, and on this night, Froch was not Froch. he lacked the menace and insolent pressure that made him overcome highly touted competition throughout his career.
Groves for his own part moves his head a lot better when punching than Froch does. As is often the case with many a boxer, if they know that their chin can be relied upon, when the time comes they feel less urgency to protect it. Froch has made a very successful career for himself by utilizing (comparatively) very little in the way of defense at the championship level.
In spite of what Groves did well, and what Froch did not so well, one thing was clear by the ninth round – Groves was not in control of the fight. Groves was clinching an awful lot more and his was tiring more quickly as the round wore on. Froch was getting hit, but was not rattled with the same effect as before. Groves, however, started to take increasingly more punishment and was unable to deal with the mounting pressure. Froch was definitely on his way to turning the fight around in his favour at the time of the stoppage, but that by no means supports the referee’s premature decision.
The fans viewing from their homes were left with the words of the SkySports commentators: “Wow! That is gonna be controversial!”
Controversial indeed.
Recipe for Success:
Don’t expect either man to have reinvented himself going into this much anticipated rematch. That being said there are a couple of things each man should try to emphasize if they want to secure the much coveted win and accompanying bragging rights.
George Groves:
- move his head when punching, move laterally with his feet
- set up his right hand with his jab to the head or body
- tie up if Froch gets inside
When Groves was able to keep the fight on the end of his straight punches he was winning. Froch landed some jabs, but didn’t land too much else when boxing on the outside. Groves should seek to keep the fight at this range and move laterally to turn Froch so he can’t set up his own attack. The issue with this is that Groves didn’t really move laterally during their first fight. This might have been because Froch wasn’t pressuring him enough where Groves felt that he had to, or it could just be a fundamental oversight in his style. Who knows? Nevertheless, if Froch chooses to pressure in this fight, Groves better get on his bike and ride it. Simply putting on his ear muffs – like he did in the first fight – got him into trouble, especially in the ninth round. Moving laterally, and tying up Froch’s arms if he gets inside will neutralize the most crucial ingredients of Froch’s winning formula.
Carl Froch:
- jab Groves to the ropes, double up on his jab to stuff the right hand counter
- mix up the levels of his hooks and uppercuts once he gets in close
- be aggressive (but not stupid – for example, he shouldn’t get his chin on top of his lead foot)
A thorough application of pressure will show the cracks in the defense of Groves. Froch has never been much of a back foot fighter (being able to fight while moving away from his opponent). He moves at his opponent and breaks them open through sheer fortitude and volume of effort. Why he chose to languish at straight punching range for most of the first fight I’ll never know. For whatever reason, it sure seemed that Froch just couldn’t pull the trigger that night and because of that, he was deservedly losing on the scorecards. His loss to Andre Ward was due to his inability to hurt Ward on the inside, or to even get inside to begin with. Groves doesn’t have that well-rounded style that Ward does and he looks to be an easier target to find and punish. Froch is going to have to jab Groves and pressure him to the ropes where can unlimber his weapons and get to work on the inside. Groves ear-muffed almost every time Froch got in his kitchen (especially along the ropes) and this is clearly a place Froch will want to spend as much time as possible.
Prediction
Froch will win by knockout in the 10th or 11th round. This is a bold statement, and I could easily be wrong but if both men show up and fought they way they usually fight – Froch wins. Groves is no slouch and his right hand can change the whole game in just one punch. However, the difference in the first fight was that Froch didn’t know what he was getting into, whereas Groves probably had “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins playing in his head as he walked out to the ring. It was his big moment to dispute two word titles (the IBF and the WBA) and he was highly-motivated. If Froch is serious about remaining a champion then he will need to fight in the way that made him a champion to begin with. The lion has remained a symbol of England for many years, and both men have lion-sized hearts in the ring. What separates these two lions is the simple fact that one is hungry, while they other may be full. The former UFC fighter Forrest Griffin once said of his own retirement: “You don’t quit fighting, fighting quits you.” Perhaps it is time for Froch to hang up the gloves if he can’t do what he does best. Perhaps Saturday May 31st will be the moment of George Groves’ ascension. Perhaps.
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