Carl Froch vs Andre Dirrell - A key to froch winning

[josh fg]

Having spent an evening surfing the web for clips of Dirrell and watched a few of his fights (yeah I need to get out more) three things strike me that are in froch's favor and that he must utilise to win:

1) Dirrell isn't used to fighters with a similar reach to him he's slightly longer of arm than froch but not significantly so
2) He's not been in with many unorthodox fighters
3) He is better in a larger ring where he can keep distance if a fighter exerts pressure (and punches hard) in a small ring he's in trouble -see Anthony Henshaw for evidence of this.

Therefore I think froch needs to use the home advantage to dictate the size of the ring so it is as small as can be so he can trap Dirrell in the corners and unload some of his bigger shots. I think Dirrell is fast but his stamina isn't great and I would like to see froch use his awkward style to hit him from weird angles particularly throwing the lazy left as a jab.

[Asterix]

Do you think Dirrell also fights a little scared, similar to Wlad Klitschko? Like he doesn't have confidence in his chin.

[GlobalBox]

Do you think Dirrell also fights a little scared, similar to Wlad Klitschko? Like he doesn't have confidence in his chin.

Watched three of Dirrell's fights on dvd and you are right he does fight that way.

There is no doubt he is hugely talented but watching him closely he is not that hard to hit at times and whilst I see him building a lead early on with his flashy counters, its far from impossible Froch finds him easier to hit than many of us imagine.

Strangely the key to finding him is when he is on top and relaxed as then he seems to let the gloves drop a fraction from his normal guard. He has not mixed at anything like this level before and I think his skill level is similar to that of Pascal to be honest.

Both hugely talented guys, its just a case of does Dirrell have that extra level to rise to.

I am not sure to be honest, he may well do but no one can say with certainty how he will react to Froch landing 3 or 4 big shots in a round on him, which at some stage he will do.

Dirrell to win 4 or 5 out of the first six rounds for me and then the fight is really on, how much will he have taken from Froch with his fast and hurtful flurries, plus how much will he have slowed down himself.

Very good fight

[whiskey]

I think Froch will stop this guy a lot faster than people think.

There's a huge fanfare surrounding Dirrell on the American boards how he's the new Roy Jones etc etc (i dont think so).

Dirrell is only 25 and a bit immature and a gobshite. I don't think his legs will allow him to perform as well as he thinks on the night. 9,000+ Froch fans baying for his blood, fighting away from home in a foreign country will have that effect.

Wheras for Carl, the arena is like fighting in his front room, he's that familiar with it all. It takes 11 minutes for him to hop in the car and park at the arena.

Incidentally Froch begins trainings at 7am today with McCracken. With gym work this afternoon and apparently he's raring to go now after having a couple of months off plus the excitement over the tournament.

The guy trains likes a beast.

[ALI]

I think Froch has the beating of Direll, i fancy him to win by KO. Direll looks a good fighter, very slick, fast hands but from the little i have seen he appears to fight negatively and that could be his downfall against Froch.

[lurkyshaka]

I think Froch will stop this guy a lot faster than people think.

There's a huge fanfare surrounding Dirrell on the American boards how he's the new Roy Jones etc etc (i dont think so).

Dirrell is only 25 and a bit immature and a gobshite. I don't think his legs will allow him to perform as well as he thinks on the night. 9,000+ Froch fans baying for his blood, fighting away from home in a foreign country will have that effect.

Wheras for Carl, the arena is like fighting in his front room, he's that familiar with it all. It takes 11 minutes for him to hop in the car and park at the arena.

Incidentally Froch begins trainings at 7am today with McCracken. With gym work this afternoon and apparently he's raring to go now after having a couple of months off plus the excitement over the tournament.

The guy trains likes a beast.

I agree, i also think Froch will master this guy both mentally and physically a lot more comfortably than most seem to reckon. Froch will have this fight finished between 4-7.

[lefthook82]

I'd love Dirrell to school him but have to agree with GLOBALBOX

From what he has shown to me he isnt going to able to keep Froch of him. I'd expect Froch to stop him but look poonderous doing it. This will be followed by a press report stating that he was fighting the taliban during his training and if he wasnt he would have looked more 'himself'

[jameswilson]

I think Direll may look good early on, but will blow himself out doing so. He is very quick but there is something about whacking a guy repeatedly and having him still come at you and I expect that to be the case with Froch.

I also question people who say Froch is very slow. He's no Linford Christie but Jermaine Taylor is an extremely quick boxer and Froch was still able to get to him. Also Froch outboxed Jean Pascal down the stretch and Pascal showed he is a decent boxer when he won the Light heavyweight title. I also question whether Dirrell is quicker and more skillful than Taylor as some American fans have suddenly said now Taylor's been beaten again. It's all well and good looking like lightning against the guys Dirrell has but there comes a time when you have to step it up.

[josh fg]

I think Direll may look good early on, but will blow himself out doing so. He is very quick but there is something about whacking a guy repeatedly and having him still come at you and I expect that to be the case with Froch.

I also question people who say Froch is very slow. He's no Linford Christie but Jermaine Taylor is an extremely quick boxer and Froch was still able to get to him. Also Froch outboxed Jean Pascal down the stretch and Pascal showed he is a decent boxer when he won the Light heavyweight title. I also question whether Dirrell is quicker and more skillful than Taylor as some American fans have suddenly said now Taylor's been beaten again. It's all well and good looking like lightning against the guys Dirrell has but there comes a time when you have to step it up.

I think Dirrell's hands are quicker than Taylor but his legs aren't if that makes sense. I also think he gets pushed back to the ropes very easily (and especially if froch can get him in a smaller ring).

Do you think Dirrell also fights a little scared, similar to Wlad Klitschko? Like he doesn't have confidence in his chin.
Do you think Dirrell also fights a little scared, similar to Wlad Klitschko? Like he doesn't have confidence in his chin.

I think he still makes a lot of the ammeter mistakes Khan made in his first 15 or so pro fights where he doesn't expect his chin to be challenged because he's used to a lower caliber of opponents and he thoughts a few and gets all cocky and forgets about defence, I think froch will parry a couple of his blows and punch back which his opponents before now haven't. If you look at his fight vs Henshaw you can see he doesn't take a lick very well.

I think if it goes that far Froch loses rounds 4 and 5 only to win in 6 or 7.

[Webbo911]

Havent seen a lot of Dirrell, but from what I have seen, I rate him.

Really tough fight this for Froch. I think he needs to let the yank feel his power early on and try keep him on the backfoot without getting picked off to often.

Improving Froch's defence much at this point is a non starter. If he can't take him out with big shots in rounds 1-3, I think he's in for a long night.

Froch by close UD.

[hitman_hatton1]

Having spent an evening surfing the web for clips of Dirrell and watched a few of his fights (yeah I need to get out more) three things strike me that are in froch's favor and that he must utilise to win:

1) Dirrell isn't used to fighters with a similar reach to him he's slightly longer of arm than froch but not significantly so
2) He's not been in with many unorthodox fighters
3) He is better in a larger ring where he can keep distance if a fighter exerts pressure (and punches hard) in a small ring he's in trouble -see Anthony Henshaw for evidence of this.

Therefore I think froch needs to use the home advantage to dictate the size of the ring so it is as small as can be so he can trap Dirrell in the corners and unload some of his bigger shots. I think Dirrell is fast but his stamina isn't great and I would like to see froch use his awkward style to hit him from weird angles particularly throwing the lazy left as a jab.

what evidence.

what u mean dirrell standing in there and beating him down in 5 rds.

froch needs to put pressure on for sure.

cos he ain't better at a distance than dirrell.

dirrell all night tbh.

pay session.

[hitman_hatton1]

Havent seen a lot of Dirrell, but from what I have seen, I rate him.

Really tough fight this for Froch. I think he needs to let the yank feel his power early on and try keep him on the backfoot without getting picked off to often.

Improving Froch's defence much at this point is a non starter. If he can't take him out with big shots in rounds 1-3, I think he's in for a long night.

Froch by close UD.

bold prediction after praising dirrell at the beginning of your post.

just don't see froch winning this.

dirrell is too fast and has the power to give froch problems if he over commits.

dirrell won't have the problems taylor had.

much better wheels and way more relaxed.

[josh fg]

Having spent an evening surfing the web for clips of Dirrell and watched a few of his fights (yeah I need to get out more) three things strike me that are in froch's favor and that he must utilise to win:

1) Dirrell isn't used to fighters with a similar reach to him he's slightly longer of arm than froch but not significantly so
2) He's not been in with many unorthodox fighters
3) He is better in a larger ring where he can keep distance if a fighter exerts pressure (and punches hard) in a small ring he's in trouble -see Anthony Henshaw for evidence of this.

Therefore I think froch needs to use the home advantage to dictate the size of the ring so it is as small as can be so he can trap Dirrell in the corners and unload some of his bigger shots. I think Dirrell is fast but his stamina isn't great and I would like to see froch use his awkward style to hit him from weird angles particularly throwing the lazy left as a jab.

what evidence.

what u mean dirrell standing in there and beating him down in 5 rds.

froch needs to put pressure on for sure.

cos he ain't better at a distance than dirrell.

dirrell all night tbh.

pay session.

No Dirrell getting put on his arse in the first round - called a slip but not - and looking massivly uncomfortable in the second (go watch the fight before trying to patronise me based on seeing the result written down on boxrec), it's hard to say how good he is at a distance because in general he's been against people with a shortter reach than froch has.

[WildWaylon]

Froch by stoppage late on. I dont see Dirrell being a massive problem, but I do think he will score well. To be sure of the win I think Froch needs to get the stoppage, because it will be a close fight for sure. Its a very exciting tournament and despite the confidence Froch has I cant see him beating Kessler who he takes on in his next fight after Dirrell.

[Twinkle Toes]

I feel Froch will edge this in another war - He'll drag Dirrell into a war, due to a combination of home support and Dirrell lacking big fight experience.

That's how I see it anyway - It's the only way Froch is going to win in my opinion.

[Phenomenal-Nutrition]

Do you think Dirrell also fights a little scared, similar to Wlad Klitschko? Like he doesn't have confidence in his chin.

Well not when he went to war with Hanshaw and knocked 7 shades of shit out of Oganov, sure they aren't elite but Froch wasn't fighting at the top level himself until his previous fight.

Many Brits have a tendency to oversate their fighters strengths and underrate the foreign opponent. Froch needs to pump the jab, force a pace, time and pick his shots well and pull Dirrell into a dog fight. Even then he might not do it as Dirrell is looking pretty hot, has a better skillset, is the better boxer but obviously is stepping up a level, so Froch will be his acid test where his intangibles will be tested.

[jammidodger]

still no sign of the tickets being on sale from what i can see. has anyone got any news on this?

[whiskey]

Froch vs Kessler will be in Copenhagen.

Apparently in an open air stadium.

[Webbo911]

Havent seen a lot of Dirrell, but from what I have seen, I rate him.

Really tough fight this for Froch. I think he needs to let the yank feel his power early on and try keep him on the backfoot without getting picked off to often.

Improving Froch's defence much at this point is a non starter. If he can't take him out with big shots in rounds 1-3, I think he's in for a long night.

Froch by close UD.

bold prediction after praising dirrell at the beginning of your post.

just don't see froch winning this.

dirrell is too fast and has the power to give froch problems if he over commits.

dirrell won't have the problems taylor had.

much better wheels and way more relaxed.

I'll admit im wavering a bit. Dirrell looks to be a very decent operator, and technically Froch is terrible.

I just reckon the step up might be too much for Dirrell. I think (and hope) Froch's heart, determination and power can carry him through.

Wouldn't be a massive shock if it went the other way though.

Kesslers tournament .

[crusader]

It's quite obvious that Dirrell has amazing hand speed, but isn't really everything else a question mark? Who has tested his chin, stamina, heart, etc? In my opinion he has already shown about average power. In his knockouts he has hit guys with everything but the kitchen sink, yet it still takes him rounds to get them out of there. Watch his fight with Findley to see what I mean.

On the other hand Froch has proved he has solid power, good chin, great heart and stamina, most importantly against a two world class fighters. Therefore, given all that has been presented I am more confident that Froch will take this one.The one thing I notice about Dirrell is that he seems to get a little troubled when someone gets in close. Don't think that will serve him well against Frochy.

I'm thinking another late rounds stoppage.

[CheckHook]

Dirrell has everything still to prove. He looks great when things are working for him and has looked good beating down very ordinary guys, but he has to translate that to world level now. Froch has already proved he has strengths that translate to world level, he has nothing to prove. We all know Frochs strengths and all know his weaknesses. The question is, can Dirrell keep Froch off him for 12 rounds and fight for 3 minuites of every round against a guy who keeps moving forward, because thats what Froch makes his opponents do. I think the early rounds are going to be key for Dirrell, if he can put rounds in the bank without taking too much and maintain his composure he has a good chance of winning, but if he starts to trade with Froch he'll find himself in trouble. My gut feeling is Froch will hurt him early and grind him down for a mid-late stoppage win.

[THEBUTCH]

I can see this being another long & tough night for Froch, but Carl is a true champion and will be prepared as usual.

The speed is a major plus for Dirrell, and I suspect Froch will have do another 'wearing down' job, a bit like what he did to Taylor.

What Froch may lack in some areas of his game, he is not short at all in having that indefinable 'champion' mentality who can pull something out when needed and that's why it's hard to bet against him.

[whiskey]

I'd like to see how good Dirrell's legs are, fighting in front of 9,000 Froch fans screaming their lungs out.

Has he even headlined a fight? i know he's never done 12 rounds.

[Asterix]

I'd like to see how good Dirrell's legs are, fighting in front of 9,000 Froch fans screaming their lungs out.

Has he even headlined a fight? i know he's never done 12 rounds.

He headlined against Hanshaw: http://www.boxrec.com/show_display.php?show_id=550783

[Autobarn]

I hope Dirrell doesn't literally run like he did in that disgusting performance v Curtis Stephens. That was a fight that set both men's careers back, considerably.

Who knows, Dirrell might do this, knowing he has more opportunities and can't get blacklisted for un TV worthy boxing.