George Groves insists his demolition of Jamaican veteran Glen Johnson at London's ExCel has identified him as a fighter to be feared by his super-middleweight rivals. Groves defended his Commonwealth title with a wide points victory over a respected opponent whose 71-fight record includes wins against Roy Jones and Antonio Tarver.
It was only the 24-year-old's 16th contest, yet he succeeded in defeating Johnson more comprehensively than British rival Carl Froch, who secured only a majority decision in June last year.
"That performance will tell the rest of the division that I'm here, that I'm a contender and someone not just to keep an eye on, but to fear," Groves said. "I will give anyone in the world a decent fight and would beat a lot of the top guys. I believe that now I'm a world class fighter.
"Johnson has boxed at the highest level for a long time, and at light heavyweight as well. The good fighters he's beaten is impressive. "I can look back at this year and say I've only had two fights, I've had two successful fights and have made big improvements."
Injury has restricted Groves to just two outings this year and while he was hit too easily, his movement, accuracy and work-rate fully justified the 120-107 120-107 119-109 decision on the scorecards.
"There were times when I was absolutely nailing him and 95 per cent of other super-middleweights would have gone, but he stood there. I genuinely thought I'd stop him. I didn't underestimate how good his chin was, but he can really take a punch."
