By Scott Gilfoid: Rather than encouraging former IBF/WBA super middleweight champion Carl Froch (33-2, 24 KOs) to accept a fight against a monster puncher in Gennady Golovkin (33-0, 30 KOs), Sky Sports commentator Paulie Malignaggi thinks that Froch doesn’t need the fight with Golovkin.
Malignaggi thinks that Froch might be better off taking a farewell fight against someone else rather than getting into the ring with the talented Golovkin. Malignaggi isn’t saying who Froch should face for his “farewell fight,” but it doesn’t take a genius to figure that he would be taking a soft touch that is no threat to beating him.
Given that Froch’s farewell fight would likely be on Sky Box Office rather than on normal Sky, we’re probably talking about boxing fans having to pay to see Froch’s final fight. As such, if it’s not someone who is a threat to beating him, I’m not so sure that’s a good deal for the fans. I mean, should fight fans have to pay to see Froch fight in what would amount to be little more than an exhibition type fight?
“Carl Froch has had such a phenomenal career. It makes you wonder whether he really needs to take such a risk.” Malignaggi said to Skysports.com. “Does he [Froch] take on a big gun like Gennady Golovkin, or does he fade off into the sunset with a farewell fight? I sometimes question whether Froch needs that fight,” Malignaggi said.
I don’t agree with this at all. Froch needs to take the Golovkin fight because it’s what the boxing fans want. Sure, Froch can say no to the fight and either retire or take on a soft job, but Froch will be seen by many boxing fans as ducking the Golovkin fight. Somehow that would fit with the image that Froch has been carefully building about himself being a warrior all these years. Warriors take on the best, don’t they?
We’ve already seen Froch not give rematches to Andre Ward and Andre Dirrell, and that obviously has looked really bad. But if Froch can’t even fight a small middleweight, then what can you conclude from that? It’s going to look really bad for Froch. Yeah, fans will forget into the future about it, but the fans that know about it now will see Froch as taking the safe route by avoiding the Golovkin fight for the safety of retirement or a soft farewell fight.
If Froch is going to take a farewell fight, he needs to face Golovkin, Adonis Stevenson, Andre Ward or Sergey Kovalev. Froch needs to show boxing fans that he’s willing to go out on his shield by taking on the best instead of following Malignaggi’s line or reasoning by not facing Golovkin and going in another direction.
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