As fight fans may have read by now, it has been confirmed how the eagerly anticipated rematch between bitter super-middleweight rivals Carl Froch and George Groves will go ahead at the colossal Wembley Stadium in London. The fight, a return meeting of last November’s controversial thriller won by Froch via 9th-round TKO, is expected to sell over 60,000 tickets on May 31st.
Promoter Eddie Hearn told BBC Sport today that he thinks the fight will surpass all other British fights as far as ticket sales go, and Hearn has called the return “the biggest fight in British boxing history.” Currently, there have been a few fights held in Britain that saw over 50,000 fans attend – the Joe Calzaghe-Mikkel Kessler fight that took place at The Millennium Stadium in Cardiff in 2007 and Ricky Hatton-Juan Lazcano clash that went down at The City of Manchester Stadium in 2008, this fight the current record holder at around 54,000 tickets sold – but Hearn is convinced Froch-Groves II will break all records.
No doubt, the WBA and IBF 168-pound rematch clash is a huge deal and will be a massive event, but which of the two fighters with all that pressure riding on their shoulders will get the win? Groves has gone on record as saying he is sure he will bag a quick win, somewhere inside four-rounds, while Froch has told Groves to look forward to the pasting he is going receive. A very tough fight to call, and a genuine 50/50 affair, nothing can be ruled out.
Is Froch past his best, the number of tough fights he’s engaged in during his great career having caught up with him? Is Groves overconfident going into the sequel? Can Groves make it through the championship rounds against warrior Froch if the fight gets that far? Will the fight even reach the later rounds?
These questions and more will be answered on May 31st and, with the promise of a cracking under-card to go along with the main event so as to ensure good value for money, that record-breaking crown can be expected to be on hand to witness it all for themselves.
Benn-Eubank was a terrific and genuinely nasty rivalry, so too was Bruno-Lewis and Benn-Watson. But Froch and Groves seem to have upped the ante in the disliking each other stakes. Neither man can afford to lose on May 31st.
For what it’s worth, I feel Froch will again find a way to win. Could we even see another controversial stoppage, or maybe a controversial decision? Let’s hope not.
