Would the Third Time be the Charm for Groves? He Thinks So:
Despite his two brutal defeats to rival Carl Froch, George Groves has made it clear he wants to step into the ring and face him again. Yes, Groves still believes that he could beat Froch. Of course, while they are fairly evenly matched Groves has been beaten on both previous occasions.
Groves made the challenge on the back of his convincing return win against Frenchman Christopher Rebrasse in their recent European Super Middleweight title fight. During the fight Froch was commentating ringside for Sky Sports.
While Groves was always the bookies favorite going into his fight with Rebrasse, commentators and pundits were worried that his early lead would crumble later on in the fight. Could Groves recover physically and psychologically following the stoppage defeats to Froch? As opoposed to the Froch fights though, he had no problem keeping up the pace on the night and convincingly claimed a unanimous decision win against the Frenchman.
The win means Groves is now in the mandatory challenger position for the WBC title currently held by Anthony Dirrell. However, after beating Rebrasse, it seems Groves was more interested in sending a message to Froch.
“You’ve stopped me twice Carl, but I still think I can beat you,” he claimed. “Everyone will laugh but so be it, maybe we can do it again. I know you are dancing around at the moment and not in boxing.”
Froch was quick to reply to his domestic rival stating that a third fight was out of the question, telling reporters “When it’s 2-0, it’s 2-0. When you’re playing pool in the local, if it’s 1-1 you’ve got to have a decider, haven’t you, but when it’s 2-0 you’re going home with a smile on your face.”
With Froch, who is currently among the favorites to win British Sports Personality of the Year according to Betfair boxing odds, out of the picture then Groves will have to set his sights on more willing opponents. The winner of this weekend’s Arthur Abraham vs. Paul Smith clash may be the most likely option, as Dirrell himself doesn’t seem inclined to face Groves anytime soon.
Groves has also stated he is very keen to fight Dirrell “He’s been very disrespectful. He’s got his win, he’s the champion and I’ll give him that respect. He says he doesn’t want to come to the UK, but we might make him.
“He says he doesn’t want to fight me, but now he has to. He’s in for a rude awakening.”
