Froch Ward Weigh in

by **Seanusarrilius** Fri 16 Dec - 21:48

Just watched it online.

Both Ward and Froch look like they know this is serious business.

Virgil Hunter was getting in the way during the square off which is annoying, go away Virgil.

Notts boys were making loads of noise.

Froch has some crazy definition I am not used to seeing with him.

Big ask but COME ON COBRA!

by spencerclarke Fri 16 Dec - 21:53

Dont suppose anyone knows if anywhere in leeds will be showing it? I'm out for the night for a 30th birthday. Could do with slipping away to watch the fight though.

by Steffan Fri 16 Dec - 21:54

As much as I hope hope Ward wins I agree Virgil Hunter is very annoying

by **Fists of Fury** Fri 16 Dec - 22:00

Ward very vocal during the staredown, has Carl gotten to him? Doubt it, but you never know! C'mon the Cobra!!

Very excited about this fight now, you cannot beat Brits being in a first class world title fight in front of the whole boxing world. Praying for a Froch win.

by Steffan Fri 16 Dec - 22:07

Ward is cool as ice. He wont let things like that effect him

If Ward wins it mucho cider

for me on Sunday

by **Fists of Fury** Fri 16 Dec - 22:09

Terrible attitude mate! I always backed Calzaghe and always back Cleverly!

Either way, let's just hope we get a good clean fight with no controversy - that seems almost too much to ask these days!

by **Seanusarrilius** Fri 16 Dec - 22:10

Ward points is still favoured scoreline by most, but Froch looks in great shape, he had wings he was so ripped, so anything is possible. Come on Cobra! Will post pohtos once they're up

by Steffan Fri 16 Dec - 22:11

Fists of Fury wrote:Either way, let's just hope we get a good clean fight with no controversy - that seems almost too much to ask these days!

Il agree with that one. Whoever wins lets hope its fair and square and leaves no excuses or doubts

by **Seanusarrilius** Fri 16 Dec - 22:13

agreed steffan. This better be a fair scrap, I can't take anymore bullsh*t controversy this year ha

by **Seanusarrilius** Fri 16 Dec - 22:13

Wonder how much Froch is making for this fight?

by Steffan Fri 16 Dec - 22:14

Seanusarrilius wrote:agreed steffan. This better be a fair scrap, I can't take anymore bullsh*t controversy this year ha

Been a bad year for boxing mate. Hope this fight is good and next year things improve

by spencerclarke Fri 16 Dec - 22:14

chill steffan, loved calzaghe but now it's the cobra's time. hope he does it. not gonna be a pretty fight but gonna be enthralling. Two that give it all going for it

by lovely_london Fri 16 Dec - 22:14

anyone got a link?

by **Seanusarrilius** Fri 16 Dec - 22:54

http://www.boxingscene.com/photos-andre-ward-carl-froch-look-ready-war--47422

Pics

by Boxtthis Fri 16 Dec - 23:06

Froch is in serious shape. Ridiculous lats on him.

by OasisBFC Fri 16 Dec - 23:37

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6BSu59D6CI

by DavidBlunkettsuppercut Fri 16 Dec - 23:53

Cant wait for this fight "Let the Roman orgy's commence"

by DavidBlunkettsuppercut Fri 16 Dec - 23:56

Wow Froch is in awsome shape

by Imperial Ghosty Sat 17 Dec - 0:04

Best shape i've ever seen Froch in which is saying something, looks like he means business, here's hoping he brings the belts and trophy home.

by Steffan Sat 17 Dec - 0:17

Them belts are going to Oakland baby Very Happy

by Boxtthis Sat 17 Dec - 0:19

Christ, Virgil Hunter is really annoying isn't he? Look at him, trying to make out that he can somehow psyche Froch out. This is about the fighters not the trainers - they shouldn't be allowed to get so involved in a staredown. Could you imagine Robert McCraken doing something similar to Ward!? No chance. Glad to see Froch didn't even acknowledge him. Froch looks super calm. I think he's genuinely confident about taking this. He'll give Ward a fight, but I still see the American taking a close points decision. I hope not, because, apart from the fact that I really want Froch to win, I find Ward to be an intensely boring person.

by Steffan Sat 17 Dec - 0:22

Id love to smash Virgil Hunter in the face. I think Ward is an ok person though think he is just a bit of your shy quiet type

by Commander Sat 17 Dec - 0:36

I hope he hasn't over-trained.

by Imperial Ghosty Sat 17 Dec - 0:42

Steffan wrote:Them belts are going to Oakland baby

How I wish Froch decided to just defend his belt in Nottingham against nobodies.

by Steffan Sat 17 Dec - 0:47

Imperial Ghosty wrote:
Steffan wrote:Them belts are going to Oakland baby

How I wish Froch decided to just defend his belt in Nottingham against nobodies.

Me too

by Imperial Ghosty Sat 17 Dec - 0:49

Much better than trying to test yourself against the best.

by Boricua Sat 17 Dec - 0:51

Andre Ward is gonna be a big wake-up call for Carl Froch. Carl's main attributes are shown when he's fighting a toe-to-toe battle. He pulled out a disciplined performance against Abraham but Ward will be a moving target and we all saw what happened in the Dirrell fight. Froch is way too slow to trouble Ward and Froch's habit of keeping his hands low will be a big disadvantage for him in this fight. As much as I like Froch, Ward's style will be too much him - so much so I predict a late round stoppage if it's not a decision for Ward.

by Steffan Sat 17 Dec - 0:51

Imperial Ghosty wrote:Much better than trying to test yourself against the best.

Yep. And having a VICTORY over Mikkel Kessler as your only big fight

by Steffan Sat 17 Dec - 0:56

Good job some people got those bums Eubank, Reid, Woodhall, Brewer, Mitchell, Sheika, Lacy, Bika and Hopkins to fall back on I guess...

by Imperial Ghosty Sat 17 Dec - 1:00

Such an amazing list of victories for a whole career, shame only one of them really means anything.

by Jimmy Moz Sat 17 Dec - 1:02

Imperial Ghosty wrote:Such an amazing list of victories for a whole career, shame only one of them really means anything.

Are you serious???

I like both fighters but do get annoyed when it always seems with the anti-Calzaghe crew that:

Froch beats a shot Robin Reid and gets credit for it. Calzaghe beat a prime Reid and everyone says he lost the fight

Froch beats a 30 year old Arthur Abraham who has seen better days to win the WBC vacant belt and gets credit for it. Calzaghe beats a 31 year old Chris Eubank who has seen better days to win the vacant WBO belt and gets stick for it

Froch beats an undefeated Jean Pascal to win the WBC title and everyone gives him credit and says what a great fight it was. Calzaghe beats an undefeated Jeff Lacy in a boxing masterclass and everyone says Lacy was overhyped

Froch beats a 42 year old Glen Johnson and gets credit for it. Calzaghe stops Omar Sheika who had previously beaten a prime Glen Johnson in his last fight but gets stick for it as Sheika was never a big name

Froch loses to beats Mikkel Kessler and everyone gives him credit for fighting in Denmark. Calzaghe beats him and everyone says Kessler was one dimensional

Froch takes a close decision in Nottingham against an unproven Andre Dirrell and gets credit for it. Calzaghe goes to America and takes a close decision against the linear light heavyweight champion of the world and fellow P4P top 10 rated fighter and everyone says he lost or even if he did win Bernard Hopkins was old

Froch beats former Middleweight champion Jermain Taylor in the last 20 seconds and get credit for it. Calzaghe beats former Supermiddleweight champions Charles Brewer, Byron Mitchell, Richie Woodhall and they all get classed as cherry picked bums

And the only reason Froch travelled more than Calzaghe is because big fat Mick couldn’t get him the fights in England. Froch would of loved to have fought at home a lot like Calzaghe did

As I say I'm a Froch fan but also being a big Calzaghe fan I do get annoyed at a lot of the hypocrisy from people who slate Joe and use Carl as a weapon.

by Imperial Ghosty Sat 17 Dec - 1:04

Its not hypocrisy as most of what you've said is very one sided, I rate Calzaghe as the better boxer but Froch has proven himself to have far more ambition.

by Boricua Sat 17 Dec - 1:06

Steffan wrote:Good job some people got those bums Eubank, Reid, Woodhall, Brewer, Mitchell, Sheika, Lacy, Bika and Hopkins to fall back on I guess...

It's hard to defend Calzaghe when you look at say Froch's record.

From the time Calzaghe won the WBO, there's a big gap to when he actually unified - some 9 or 10 years. It's taken Froch a few years to reach that point of his career and he's fought stellar opposition in doing so.

On the contrary, Calzaghe's resume is lacking any real substance to warrant claims that he's head and shoulders about Froch and Ward.

Put it this way, whoever wins tomorrow night will surpass Calzaghe's 'reign' at 168.

by Jimmy Moz Sat 17 Dec - 1:08

I think saying Calzaghe has one victory of note very one sided. I hope the Cobra wins tomorrow but that doesn't mean to say that it's going to discard everything Calzaghe achieved. If you wasn't a fan then fine but try and be realistic.

by Imperial Ghosty Sat 17 Dec - 1:11

It took Calzaghe 10 years after getting to world level before he started facing good oppostion, Froch gets to world level and faces good fighters one after another which is the big difference.

by Jimmy Moz Sat 17 Dec - 1:16

Personally I don't understand why the British boxing public just can't celebrate and appreciate both fighters without having to go down the route of you can like one but have to dislike the other. I'm a fan of both. Slighty took more to Calzaghe than Froch I admit but still a Froch fan and respect both careers all the same.

by Boricua Sat 17 Dec - 1:18

Imperial Ghosty wrote:It took Calzaghe 10 years after getting to world level before he started facing good oppostion, Froch gets to world level and faces good fighters one after another which is the big difference.

I think the key point here is consistency.

Calzaghe has never consistently faced top-tier opponents.

Take a look at Froch's last 5 or 6 fights: Abraham, Pascal, Kessler, Dirrell, Taylor, Johnson and Ward next.

I'd take at 2 of those guys to beat Calzaghe - especially Dirrell who would be a stylistic nightmare for any version of Joe. And let's not forget, Calzaghe wanted no part of Johnson.

by Imperial Ghosty Sat 17 Dec - 1:22

I question Joes ambition but not his ability, he beats all the current lot comfortably including Ward, Froch and definitely Dirrell.

by Jimmy Moz Sat 17 Dec - 1:22

Boricua wrote:I'd take at 2 of those guys to beat Calzaghe - especially Dirrell who would be a stylistic nightmare for any version of Joe. And let's not forget, Calzaghe wanted no part of Johnson.

Sorry, but no way does Dirrell beat Calzaghe or even Robin Reid or Sven Ottke for that matter. As for Johnson, he lost to Omar Sheika who in his next fight got stopped by Calzaghe.

by Jimmy Moz Sat 17 Dec - 1:24

Imperial Ghosty wrote:I question Joes ambition but not his ability, he beats all the current lot comfortably including Ward, Froch and definitely Dirrell.

Ok well that's more understandable for me then. To suggest that Dirrell beats Calzaghe like Boricua did is laughable in my opinion.

by Boricua Sat 17 Dec - 1:45

I don't question Joe's abilities. But stylistically, I think Dirrell would have beat him and that's based purely on styles!

by Herman Jaeger Sat 17 Dec - 1:58

Jimmy Moz wrote:
Imperial Ghosty wrote:I question Joes ambition but not his ability, he beats all the current lot comfortably including Ward, Froch and definitely Dirrell.

Ok well that's more understandable for me then. To suggest that Dirrell beats Calzaghe like Boricua did is laughable in my opinion.

Why so laughable? Who on Joe's resume has comparable speed to Dirrell? No way of definitively saying Calzaghe can deal with that kind of speed. No yardstick to go buy. The only super middle with similar speed obviously Jones was possibly avoided- 'I know my limitations.' How do we know the fight wouldn't look like the first few rounds of the Hopkins fight, with Calzaghe slowed only with Dirrell able to sustain the pace throughout the whole fight? Dirrell wouldn't fear Calzaghe's power like he did Froch and Abraham. No way outlandish to give Dirrell a good chance.

by Boricua Sat 17 Dec - 2:12

Calzaghe performed against opponents who stood in front of him. You only have to look at his fight against Hopkins to see he couldn't do as good against a moving target. If the Calzaghe that fought Hopkins fought the Dirrell that fought Froch, I see a straightforward points win for Dirrell. Dirrell isn't easy to hit and Calzaghe wasn't a precise puncher let alone a power puncher. It really isn't that far-fetched. But to suggest Calzaghe is somehow head and shoulders above the current crop certainly is.

by Imperial Ghosty Sat 17 Dec - 11:10

You are talking absolute garbage, Hopkins 20 years of experience going into the Calzaghe fight, it was this that made the fight close not because he moved. No offence to Froch but if he can beat Dirrell on points regardless of any apparent stylistic issues then Calzaghe does with even more comfort.

by **owen10ozzy** Sat 17 Dec - 12:14

Froch looks in phenomenal shape. The size of those lats is ridiculous. Got to say he looks much the stronger man especially across the shoulders. Whilst I do favour Ward slightly, based on the fact he has yet to be in a war and the fact i think Froch is going to be the stronger guy, if Froch can get inside Ward then it would not surprise me one bit to see him stop Ward around the 9th round! Heres hoping its going to be a cracker!

by BoxingFan88 Sat 17 Dec - 12:31

Keep calzaghe out of this, its Froch's time. I like Ward as well really great approach to the sweet science, but I'll be supporting Froch all the way, my favourite fighter in Britain. Can't see anything but a Ward UD, he really is a special talent.

by SportsmanGC Sat 17 Dec - 12:38

Def staying up for this one tonight. Froch looks real relaxed in the weigh-in, but i'm nervous that he may just find Ward a bit too awkward. I feel Ward beats him to the punch for that first half of the fight. If Froch can keep the workrate up, I do feel he can make things difficult for ward in the second half. However, I cant see Froch getting a close decision - so the rounds he wins he needs to win well. Scored by judges 116-112 Ward, but I expect Froch to have legitimate claim to winning 6 rounds. So, not a robbery but I think we'll be dissapointed at the cards.

by OasisBFC Sat 17 Dec - 12:53

Imperial Ghosty wrote:Its not hypocrisy as most of what you've said is very one sided, I rate Calzaghe as the better boxer but Froch has proven himself to have far more ambition.

thats actually pretty much spot on.
ambition and belief.

calzaghe would never have had his 10 year WBO bum run if he actually believed he could go and beat the best in the division.

by WHU_Champo_League_in_7Yrs Sat 17 Dec - 13:17

Froch looked huge compared to ward despite being 0.5 lbs lighter. He could come in on fight night huge. He looks very strong, obviously wants to land his bombs and wear ward down and keep up the workrate, but the added muscle and age may make him sluggish which could get ward into a comfortable lead 2/3 through the fight. I hope for a froch win but cant see it

by **Fists of Fury** Sat 17 Dec - 16:25

Just watched the fight camp 360 on the Showtime website, absolutely brilliant, and far superior to 24/7.

Really pumped for this fight now, it is a big, big ask but come on Carl. Just seeing him over there in NYC as a British world champion fills me with pride, it'd be immense for British boxing if he could beat America's next golden boy and unify the super-middleweight titles.

On a side note, Ward's trainer is hilarious!! Have seen a few people say they find him annoying, but he is just one of those typical American trainer characters, which I happen to find funny.

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