Joe Calzaghe

Froch says he’s #1 fighter in British history; Calzaghe tears into him

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froch644By Scott Gilfoid: It’s just what I was afraid of; IBF/WBA super middleweight champion Carl Froch’s close 12 round unanimous decision victory over past his best Mikkel Kessler last Saturday night seems to have gone to Froch’s head because now he’s talking about being the best fighter in Great Britain history.

Former super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe took issue with Froch’s bragging and tore into him big time.

Here’s what Froch had to say about himself at the bbc.co.uk: “In Great Britain I’m number one. It’s between me and Lennox Lewis, depending on how far you go back.

Calzaghe picks Froch to beat Kessler

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By Scott Gilfoid: You can add former super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe to the long list of people who think that IBF super middleweight champion Carl Froch (30-2, 22 KO’s) will defeat WBA champion Mikkel Kessler (46-2, 35 KO’s) this Saturday night in their rematch.

Calzaghe thinks Kessler isn’t the same fighter he was back in 2007 when Calzaghe fought him and won a close 12 round unanimous decision.

Would Calzaghe make a comeback to face Ward?

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calzaghe3532325By Nick Hagan: There has been a lot of talk during the last few days, on social media and boxing websites (since Calzaghe went on Sky Sports) on the subject of who would have won If Calzaghe and Ward had ever fought.

From my count there has been three reports alone published on Boxingnews24, with many different people expressing their views on Calzaghe. Most being positive, but with a few negatives thrown In from Individuals who feel that Calzaghe ducked Dawson and Ward and retired rather than having to face them.

Ward: It’s easy for Calzaghe to talk from the comfort of his couch

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WardBy Scott Gilfoid: It didn’t take long for WBA super middleweight champion Andre Ward respond to the news of former super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe blabbering about how he would have beaten Ward if they had fought in the past. Ward’s comment to that response was this on his social media site: “Yeah, it’s easy to say that from the comfort of your couch!!”

Earlier last week, Calzaghe had told Sky Sports News “I would have beaten Ward…I think Ward is good in his comfort zone, but I would have gotten him out of that and he wouldn’t have fancied it.”

Gee, it’s too bad that Calzaghe chose not to fight Ward in 2008 because Ward wanted the fight but Calzaghe showed no interest in facing him. I wonder why.

Calzaghe didn’t duck Ward

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calzaghe47353By Thomas Cowan: I read an article on this site earlier about a fight that never happened between Joe Calzaghe and Andre Ward. This stated that Calzaghe chose to retire instead of entering the Super Six tournament because he knew he would lose to Ward. This seemed so ridiculous that I had to counter it with an article based on actual facts instead of xenophobic opinions.

Firstly, I know not everyone liked Calzaghe and to a certain extent, I understand why. He didn’t always fight the best and some thought he was a ducker, others felt that all the other fighters avoided him because he was extremely talented. Personally, I stand somewhere in between those to schools of thought. I’ll return to that topic later but first I’ll address the Super Six issue.

Calzaghe thinks he would have beaten Andre Ward

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calzaghe445574By Scott Gilfoid: Former super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe (46-0, 32 KO’s) thinks he would have beaten Andre Ward before he retired from boxing back in 2008.

Calzaghe said to Sky Sports News “I would have beaten Ward…I can adapt to every style and mine was harder to hit. I think Ward is good in his comfort zone, but I would have gotten him out of that and he wouldn’t have fancied it.”

Well, considering Calzaghe opted not to take part in the Super Six tournament to test himself against Ward, I think he knows he would have lost to Ward.

Calzaghe: Avoider or Avoided?

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calzaghe56736735By Jamie Eskdale: Joe Calzaghe retired from boxing in February 2009 so I am perhaps going over old ground here. However I am still interested to know people’s opinion on the Welshman.

Joe Calzaghe was WBO Super Middleweight champion for 10 years. He successfully defended the title 21 times. Throughout his career he also held the WBC WBA and IBF versions of the Super Middleweight title and also held the ring title at Super Middleweight and also Light Heavyweight.

In 1997 Joe fought Chris Eubank for the vacant WBO Super Middleweight title.The title was vacated by Steve Collins claiming injury. Though many people at the time claimed he wanted nothing to do with Calzaghe. Collins later retired.

Calzaghe picks Froch to beat Kessler in rematch on May 25th

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kessler434By Scott Gilfoid: Former IBF/WBA/WBC/WBO super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe is picking IBF super middleweight champion Carl Froch (30-2, 22 KO’s) to beat WBA super middleweight champion Mikkel Kessler (46-2, 35 KO’s) in their long awaited rematch next month on May 25th at the O2 Arena in London, UK.

Calzaghe’s reasoning for selecting the 35-year-old Froch to defeat the 34-year-old Kessler is that Calzaghe thinks Kessler hasn’t aged as well as Froch, and can no longer get around the ring like he once did earlier in his career, and he also thinks Froch’s home country advantage will be a huge factor in his favor for this fight.

Froch sees his legacy as being greater than Calzaghe

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calzaghe53454By Scott Gilfoid: IBF super middleweight champion Carl Froch believes that he’s accomplished more in his career than former super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe. Froch feels he’s faced the better competition overall and taken more risks.

Froch said to the telegraph.co.uk “I’ve fought more unbeaten fighters…I’m taking unbeaten people’s scalps and fighting at a higher level. Calzaghe has two or three names which stand out on his record.”

It hurts Froch’s case that he was beaten by Mikkel Kessler, a fighter that Calzaghe beat in 2007 by a 12 round unanimous decision when Kessler was at his best. However, Froch definitely has faced the better overall competition than Calzaghe, so you have to give him that.

Is Joe Calzaghe an all time great?

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calzaghe445574By John Kelvin: Joe Calzaghe is regarded by most fans and media as the greatest super middleweight of all time and an all time great fighter in general due to his 46-0 record. However on closer inspection of Calzaghe’s record he does not appear to be that great a fighter.

Calzaghe won his first title in 1997 against a faded past his best Chris Eubank and held the title for 10 years making 21 successful defenses in the process. That is an impressive number of defenses but who were those successful defenses against? Calzaghe’s first five defenses are as follows: Branko Sobot, Juan Gimenez, Robin Reid, Rick Thornberry and David Starrie.