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I’M backing Carl Froch to exact clinical revenge over Mikkel Kessler tonight.
Three years ago, when the pair locked horns in Denmark as part of Showtime’s Super Six series, the Great Dane scalped Froch by a unanimous decision after a titanic tussle.
Home advantage was critical on that occasion and will prove equally decisive when the gladiators collide for the IBF and WBA super-middleweight belts at London’s O2.
The action should be lively and the winner will cement his place as No 2 in the division behind unbeaten US star Andre Ward.
Both Froch and Kessler have fallen short against Ward. Kessler pulled out after 11 one-sided rounds, while the Brit was outfoxed over 12.
WBA king Ward would beat both again and this makes it a tough sell for the winner.
People mistakenly believe that I’m on a downer with Froch but I’ve huge respect for all that he’s achieved for British boxing.
The Cobra is seriously tough and he always comes to fight.
In the past, I have simply highlighted that Joe Calzaghe was superior in both skill and commercial appeal compared to the Cobra.
Kessler has fought on these shores before. He lost to Calzaghe in front of 54,000 at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium in 2007.
I believe styles make fights and, trust me, Calzaghe would have been too quick and classy for Froch.
Last week, Froch complained that fellow Brits Nathan Cleverly and George Groves were somehow disloyal for accepting work as paid spar hands to Kessler over in Denmark.
I was averse to Nathan accepting that ‘busman’s holiday’ because, with Kessler perilously tight at 12st, he’d have served as a perfect name opponent for the Welshman when he inevitably rises to light-heavy.
As for Kessler, it’s no secret that Clev likes to spar hard. By all accounts, he did a job on Kessler and, despite their friction, Nathan is adamant that Froch will stop the Dane.
That’s good enough for me and I’d be surprised if Kessler is still standing at the end.
Three years ago, when the pair locked horns in Denmark as part of Showtime’s Super Six series, the Great Dane scalped Froch by a unanimous decision after a titanic tussle.
Home advantage was critical on that occasion and will prove equally decisive when the gladiators collide for the IBF and WBA super-middleweight belts at London’s O2.
The action should be lively and the winner will cement his place as No 2 in the division behind unbeaten US star Andre Ward.
Both Froch and Kessler have fallen short against Ward. Kessler pulled out after 11 one-sided rounds, while the Brit was outfoxed over 12.
WBA king Ward would beat both again and this makes it a tough sell for the winner.
People mistakenly believe that I’m on a downer with Froch but I’ve huge respect for all that he’s achieved for British boxing.
The Cobra is seriously tough and he always comes to fight.
In the past, I have simply highlighted that Joe Calzaghe was superior in both skill and commercial appeal compared to the Cobra.
Kessler has fought on these shores before. He lost to Calzaghe in front of 54,000 at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium in 2007.
I believe styles make fights and, trust me, Calzaghe would have been too quick and classy for Froch.
Last week, Froch complained that fellow Brits Nathan Cleverly and George Groves were somehow disloyal for accepting work as paid spar hands to Kessler over in Denmark.
I was averse to Nathan accepting that ‘busman’s holiday’ because, with Kessler perilously tight at 12st, he’d have served as a perfect name opponent for the Welshman when he inevitably rises to light-heavy.
As for Kessler, it’s no secret that Clev likes to spar hard. By all accounts, he did a job on Kessler and, despite their friction, Nathan is adamant that Froch will stop the Dane.
That’s good enough for me and I’d be surprised if Kessler is still standing at the end.
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