by James Slater – As one great fighter reaches the end of his career, another guy who wants to take over his spot as the premiere super-middleweight in the world is about to receive his first shot at a world title. The two men I’m writing about are Britain’s Joe Calzaghe and Carl Froch..
Calzaghe has enjoyed a hugely successful and respected career, and is more than likely one or maybe two fights away from retirement. Froch, meanwhile, even though he is already 31-years-of-age, is about to get his first big chance – a opportunity to capture the WBC 168-pound title Joe once held. Froch will face yet another unbeaten and would-be star in Canada’s Jean Pascal in a contest that will decide the world title “The Pride of Wales” gave up. What “The Cobra” and his team really wanted, however, was an all-British showdown between Froch and Calzaghe.
Speaking with ITV boxing recently, Froch’s promoter Mick Henessy said he believes a fight between his fighter and Calzaghe would have been a “mega-fight,” but that even without it Froch can become an even bigger star than Joe.
“I honestly believe he can go one above Joe in terms of popularity,” Hennessy said. “I won’t take anything away from Joe. Joe’s a great fighter and he has enjoyed a fabulous career. Joe’s strengths though are that he got by on being teak-tough, being a real hard-case and having a brilliant work-rate. Carl has all of that. Not only is he teak-tough and a real hard-case he can work for twenty rounds. On top of that and what Joe hasn’t got is that Carl can knock you out with either hand. When you have a fighter like that it obviously makes fights that much more exciting. He is for me a far more exciting fighter than Joe Calzaghe and I think he’ll prove to be a better fighter as well.”
Froch will certainly have to go some to be more exciting that Calzaghe OR to be a better fighter. The majority of Calzaghe’s fights have been far from boring, and his greatness is, in most eyes, beyond doubt. Froch’s first acid test will come against Pascal in December, and both he and Hennessy obviously believe he will win and be on his first step to true stardom. But what would a Froch-Calzaghe clash have been like?
Hennessy told ITV what he thought of the match-up that will never happen.
“Joe gave up the WBC title rather than fight Carl,” Hennessy declared. “Fair enough he’s fighting Roy Jones next, but everyone knows that the biggest fights over here [in the U.K] and the ones that mean the most are the ones between world class domestic fighters. That [Calzaghe-Froch] would have been a mega-fight but Joe chose not to fight Carl because Joe knows how dangerous Carl Froch is. One thing Joe is, he’s a smart fighter and so he has chosen to take on a fighter in Roy Jones who is a lot older and way past his best.”
Despite not getting a huge and very lucrative Calzaghe showdown, Hennessy feels his fighter will prosper nonetheless.
“It’s been hard for us but while it’s took us a while to get to this stage [world level] I truly feel Carl will have a good few years at the top because of the way he lives and everything.”
We will know a lot more about “The Cobra’s” future prospects come December the 6th.