Froch: ‘Calzaghe is nothing but a bully’

Wellington · Post by **Wellington** » 13 Sep 2005, 08:44

Froch: ‘Calzaghe is nothing but a bully’

Carl Froch thought that the hobbits had landed in Cardiff on Saturday night when he tuned in to watch Joe Calzaghe and Amir Khan.

“Their opponents looked so small to me, I begun to wonder if their matchmaker had been on the blower to someone in Middle Earth,” said the British and Commonwealth super middleweight champion Froch. “I had to check to make sure there was no hair sprouting from Evans Ashira’s boots.”

He continued: “I couldn’t believe the difference in size when Carey squared up to Khan.

“Then when Ashira walked out I almost choked on my cocoa. I had to do a double take to make sure it wasn’t Baby Jake Matlala.

“Wasn’t Ashira down to fight Takaloo a few years ago at light middleweight? He definitely looked two weight divisions below Calzaghe.”

‘The Cobra’ may have been dismayed by the obvious disparity in size between WBO champion and challenger, but he was far from surprised.

“I have come to expect Joe to pick on easy targets,” Froch added. “I believe he is nothing but a bully.

“Last week he was having a go at Ricky Hatton, who in my opinion is this country’s only genuine world champion. He knows Hatton can’t do anything about it in the ring.

“Clinton Woods also copped it. What’s the point in that? I believe Calzaghe knows that isn’t that hard a job.

“Why doesn’t Joe get bold and call me out? Like I said before, perhaps he knows what I do: that I will smoke his boots, I will end his career.

“Bully’s don’t call out the real big boys. They like to have things stacked in their favour, they want it all on their own terms. That’s why when the going gets tough they run home to their daddies.”

The 28-year-old from Nottingham believes that Calzaghe did the equivalent of this on Saturday night when things didn’t go according to plan.

“To begin with he threw everything he could at Ashira looking for the early knockout, but I reckon he soon realised that he probably wouldn’t get him out of there,“ Froch said. “It honestly looked to me as if the fight went out of him early doors.

“Then he started boxing with only one hand, to my mind he turned the fight into a glorified sparring session. I don’t think that’s acceptable, even if he did suffer an injury.

“If you ask me he should have bitten down on his gumshield and just gone on with putting on a proper fight. The adrenaline would have got him through. If the hand was broken, it was broken; he couldn’t have made it any worse.

“Instead, I believe Joe cried off. I feel he refused the challenge and took the easy route, even though he was headlining a live show on TV and was there to entertain potentially millions of fans.

“I think we are all in trouble if boxers like this are spearheading the return of terrestrial broadcasters to the sport.”

Froch is in a position to criticise, given that he knows a thing or two about hand injuries.

“When I fought Henry Porras in Hollywood in April I suffered similar damage to my hand,” Froch explained. “I split a capsule on my knuckle in the fourth round.

“It hurt like hell, but I carried on using it. I was there to fight, to do a job. Nothing was going to stop me.

“After a while, the pain went to the back of my mind. It went numb; that’s how I know the effect of adrenaline.

“I went on to stop Porras in eight rounds – and he was an established super middleweight operator.

“He had a deserved #11 ranking with the WBC, one of the most prestigious governing bodies, whereas I don’t feel Ashira had earned his #10 position with the WBO.

“Whilst from what I can tell Ashira hadn’t fought one single name at super middleweight, Porras gave championship contenders Otis Grant and Danilo Haussler all they could handle over the distance and was unlucky to be stopped by now WBA champion Mikkel Kessler.

“I believe Porras was a far tougher opponent than Ashira, even though I didn’t need for there to be a ‘world’ title on the line when I fought him – we called it a 10-round International fight.

“Yet I dealt with him in sensational style, with only one good hand.

“If you want proof of that you can see the fight in full on British Eurosport at 7pm on Tuesday 27th September. It will be the first time it has ever been shown in Britain.”

Following his US debut Froch was advised to have surgery immediately. He was more concerned, however, with getting a mandatory defence of his British title out of the way.

“I could have postponed the Matthew Barney fight in July,” he added. “But it had been on the cards for a while and Barney had been shouting his mouth off, so I couldn’t wait to shut him up.

“There was also a TV date in place and a sell-out expected at the Nottingham Arena. I didn’t want to let anyone down, so I booked the surgery for a week after the fight, had two injections and got on with giving him a sound beating.

“Unlike on Saturday night the injury wasn’t mentioned once. And you certainly didn’t see me walking around after the fight waving my hand about.”

Froch finished: “Joe’s injury may have ruled him out of the Lacy contest in November, but in my opinion there is only one super middleweight star in this country who is up for that job anyway.

“I will be targeting Lacy once I am fully fit again. I want to fly the flag for Britain by taking on and beating the world’s best. Just sit back, enjoy the ride and watch me unify the division.”

s9s · Post by **s9s** » 13 Sep 2005, 09:40

Froch may be arrogant, but boy is he funny, I look forward to his next fight.

Shirow · Post by **Shirow** » 13 Sep 2005, 09:44

Who knows if he is actually writing these things himself but i'm starting to warm to Carl "i'll smoke his boots" Froch.
I've found him arrogant when i saw him on the BBC shows but that's balanced out by humour - in these releases at least.

numpty · Post by **numpty** » 13 Sep 2005, 09:51

Forget about a boxing match, get these 2 in the ring and give them each a microphone and you would have the best stand up comic session since Tommy Cooper!

stujones · Post by **stujones** » 13 Sep 2005, 09:52

Never really minded him, just thought he had ultimate self belief as opposed to arrogance. I thought earlier on it was a little bit of arrogance cause he was calling out world champions when he was the English champion having fought nobody, but now - he is the British and Commonwealth champion having beaten a European level fighter in Barney, its time he started to make such press realises.

He is quite right in what he is saying.

T.BONE · Post by **T.BONE** » 13 Sep 2005, 09:55

dont think the cobra will beat joe galz now ,but in 12 months time he would be ready,that would make for a good fight.

jamesmcdonnell · Post by **jamesmcdonnell** » 13 Sep 2005, 09:57

I think it Carl's case, the majority of what he says does actually come from his mouth. Someone I know interviewed him, and he wasn't exactly shy with the responses.

I know Froch has a lot of flaws, but with Joe's Fragile hands, I think Carl would have a chance, after all, he chased Barney down and gave him a right wellying at the end.

I'm not saying Barney is on Calzaghe's level, but defensively he's very hard to get to, and Carl managed to almost stop him.

Bard of Boxrec · Post by **Bard of Boxrec** » 13 Sep 2005, 10:21

'nearly choked on my cocoa'

Froch is a great character and makes all the right noises. I think he has talent too.

I say he beats Calzaghe by fighting sensibly against what has become a slapping, flapping idiot. Those shots from calzaghe are not good, hard shots. Ashira, a blown up middleweight, was hardly hurt at all in that fight, even before calzaghe blew his hand.

I just don't see a determined, hungry Froch going down to Calslappy.

steve689 · Post by **steve689** » 13 Sep 2005, 10:33

Say what you will about Froch you can't look away from the fact he is offering out Calzaghe and Joe has no response to him, the old "He doesn't deserve his chance" spiel doesn't wash anymore as Calzaghe is granting chances to far less deserving contenders. Froch is calling out people but backing it up by getting in the ring with them, you can't argue with that.

Old bones Ian · Post by **Old bones Ian** » 13 Sep 2005, 10:46

Froch is making a noise, but he knows that a fight against Clazaghe is a distant thing, can you see Froch signing over options to Mr Warren if he won against Joe.

Froch doesn't seem so keen to call out Beyer, Kessler and Lacy just yet. I think he needs a few good wins over mid level contenders to be able to contend with the big boys.

BunglesFingers · Post by **BunglesFingers** » 13 Sep 2005, 11:07

Great stuff from The Cobra, keep it coming!

tonyevs · Post by **tonyevs** » 13 Sep 2005, 12:10

I think Froch may be Calzaghe`s only big fight out there if he doesn`t get another chance with Lacy.

Just like Benn, Eubank and Watson were yrs ago.
They were not the best in the division but they were the best known in the division to the TV public.

Nobody has heard of Kessler or Beyer and Lacy may go elsewher rather than get stagnated waiting for, Joe so Froch may just get his chance sometime next year.

jeej · Post by **jeej** » 13 Sep 2005, 16:57

Ah you gotta love Froch!

To think I could never stand him before, the guy is classic! Just hope he has the skills to back up his mouth.

steve689 · Post by **steve689** » 13 Sep 2005, 17:02

Froch-Calzaghe could turn out to be a crossroads fight like Calzaghe-Eubank was, the younger hungrier challenger takes the title off the older champion.

tonyevs · Post by **tonyevs** » 13 Sep 2005, 17:38

I mentioned about Froch `s age before and got shot down, but I just feel he is getting on a bit and should really be getting a move on.

Calzaghe has been around forever but he is not that much older than Froch..is it something like 5yrs.
People go on about Calzaghe not having long left ( I include myself in there) but what about Froch? his long amateur career may have clocked up more wear and tear than a protected early pro career would have.

I`d like to see the fight...I don`t there would be many tears if any one of them lost...that is except for Allegedly

nickd · Post by **nickd** » 14 Sep 2005, 02:28

“Their opponents looked so small to me, I begun to wonder if their matchmaker had been on the blower to someone in Middle Earth,” said the British and Commonwealth super middleweight champion Froch. “I had to check to make sure there was no hair sprouting from Evans Ashira’s boots.”

“Then when Ashira walked out I almost choked on my cocoa. I had to do a double take to make sure it wasn’t Baby Jake Matlala."

Brilliant!

ALI · Post by **ALI** » 14 Sep 2005, 03:39

Are you all on drugs? Froch could not lace Calzaghe's boots! Both JC & Lacy would stop him very early, i'd put the mortgage on it.

Calzaghe may be in a bad position, but not so bad that he needs to lower himself by getting into a slagging match with the likes of Froch.... lets keep it real!

nickd · Post by **nickd** » 14 Sep 2005, 03:46

ALI wrote:Are you all on drugs? Froch could not lace Calzaghe's boots! Both JC & Lacy would stop him very early, i'd put the mortgage on it.

Calzaghe may be in a bad position, but not so bad that he needs to lower himself by getting into a slagging match with the likes of Froch.... lets keep it real!

Keep it real? Froch is better than Calzaghe's last 4 opponents.... and 2 of those chumps went the distance!

pasty_spud · Post by **pasty_spud** » 14 Sep 2005, 03:59

what do you mean "the likes of froch" he undefeated,british & commonwealth champ and rising up the ranks fast....WBC-13/WBA-15 & WBO-11..and calzaghe manages to fight a middleweight ranked 10 by the WBO who's never fought at super mid.......i think the "likes of calzaghe" need to put up or shut up

boxingchat · Post by **boxingchat** » 14 Sep 2005, 04:25

Why is he so desparate to fight JC? what happened to his big US deal with ODLH and his big TV contracts then? Does he need JC to feed his family. As for trogs....look no further than his own paymaster, little Mick.

His record is hardly littered with top names is it?

nickd · Post by **nickd** » 14 Sep 2005, 04:29

boxingchat wrote:Why is he so desparate to fight JC? what happened to his big US deal with ODLH and his big TV contracts then? Does he need JC to feed his family. As for trogs....look no further than his own paymaster, little Mick.

His record is hardly littered with top names is it?

Neither is Calzaghe's and he's an 8 year "world champion".

NEXT.....

Coconut · Post by **Coconut** » 14 Sep 2005, 04:36

boxingchat wrote:Why is he so desparate to fight JC? what happened to his big US deal with ODLH and his big TV contracts then? Does he need JC to feed his family. As for trogs....look no further than his own paymaster, little Mick.

His record is hardly littered with top names is it?

Calzaghe is a big noise in the division and domestically has to be the target. It's also a big money fight for Froch. It's the natural fight for the division in this country.

The more time passes the more I lean towards Froch on this one, although he'll have to show he's got a chin.

E · Post by E » 14 Sep 2005, 04:43

boxingchat wrote:Why is he so desparate to fight JC? what happened to his big US deal with ODLH and his big TV contracts then? Does he need JC to feed his family. As for trogs....look no further than his own paymaster, little Mick.

His record is hardly littered with top names is it?

All due respect mate, but your posts are starting to sound like Allegedly FW's News of the World column....

nickd · Post by **nickd** » 14 Sep 2005, 04:45

E wrote:
boxingchat wrote:Why is he so desparate to fight JC? what happened to his big US deal with ODLH and his big TV contracts then? Does he need JC to feed his family. As for trogs....look no further than his own paymaster, little Mick.

His record is hardly littered with top names is it?
All due respect mate, but your posts are starting to sound like Allegedly FW's News of the World column....

Uncanny isn't it?

DA_SERGEANT_WRIGHT · Post by **DA_SERGEANT_WRIGHT** » 14 Sep 2005, 07:58

YEP LETS REMEMBER FROCH HAS NEVER BIN DWN AMATUER OR PRO SO I FINK HE MUST HAV SOME SORT OF CHIN PLUS IVE SEEN HIM CAUGHT AN NES NEVER EVEN TWIDDLED THE KNEES YET HE HAD 88 AMATUER FIGHTS AND ONLY LOST 8 SO HE MUST HAV SOME PEDEGREE CALZAGHE DID WIN THE ABA'S 3 TIMES BUT FROCH DID WIN THE ABA'S TWICE ASWELL TO HIS RESPECTS AN DID GET GOLD IN THE COMMONWEALTH GAMES AN BRONZE IN THE WORLD AMATUER CHAMPIONSHIPS SO I DNT FINK HES BIN THAT WORN DWN BY THE AMS I THINK FROCH CAN BEAT CALZAGHE ON POINTS MYSELF OR CUD ACTUALLY KO HIM CUZ IF SLAPPY CAN GET DROPPED HARD BY NO PUNCH WATSOEVER KABRERY SALEEM WHO WAS FASTING AT TIME OF FIGHT THEN I FINK FROCH CUD DO WAY MORE DAMAGE I DNT FINK THOSE SLAPPS WUD ALL GET THROUGH ON FROCH EITHER CUZ HES NOT FLAT FOOTED NOR 5'6 LIKE ASHIRA FROCH HAS GREAT 1 LINERS I FINK HE WILL B THE FUTURE STAR