By Jake Donovan
Terms have been reached for a super middleweight bout between newly crowned titlist Badou Jack and mandatory challenger George Groves. The two sides came to an agreement at the 11th hour to avoid a purse bid hearing, which was scheduled for Friday.
"We have a deal; the fight is on," confirmed a spokesman for Sauerland Event. "The WBC (super middleweight championship between) Badou Jack and Geroge Groves will take place in the United States."
A date and hosting venue have yet to be determined for the fight.
Jack (19-1-1, 12KOs) - the fighing pride of Sweden but now based out of Las Vegas - won the title with an upset win over previously unbeaten Anthony Dirrell in their Spike TV-televised headliner in Chicago barely four weeks ago. Groves (21-2, 16KOs) flew in fron England to catch a ringside view of the fight, of the knowledge that he would get the winner.
The two camps immediately began negotiations in hopes of avoiding a purse bid. As Jack is promoted by Mayweather Promotions, such talks were obviously stalled by the massive May 2 event in which Mayweather soundly outpointed Manny Pacquiao in the richest prizefight in boxing history.
While Mayweather isn't the be-all, end-all of Mayweather Promotions, all hands were on deck and all eyes on Vegas for the event, which meant having to regroup and focus on new business immediately thereafter.
Groves will fight stateside for just the second time in his career. The lone previous trip abroad for the Londoner came in 2012, when he knocked out Francisco Sierra in the 6th round of their July '12 clash. The bout came on the heels of a breakout run, a close-but-clear points win over James DeGale when both were unbeaten in 2011, followed by a two-round knockout of Paul Smith later that year.
The lone two losses of Groves' career both came in separate title shots at Carl Froch. He was up on all three cards when Froch rallied to hurt him in round nine. Overzealous officiating by Howard John Foster led to a controversial stoppage, prompting an immediate rematch six months later. Froch once again prevailed, overcoming a rough start to score a highlight reel 8th round knockout last May in front of 80,000 strong at Wembley Stadium.
Two straight wins have followed, including a 7th round knockout of Denis Douglin last November.
Jack has won three straight, but his convincing win over Dirrell was considered one of the biggest upsets of 2015. The bout just over a year following his lone loss, a stunning 1st round knockout at the hands of Derek Edwards. The setback naturally raised questions about his whiskers, but it never came into play as he delivered a career-best performance versus Dirrell to claim the crown.
Jake Donovan is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox