He was finished at the end of the 4th and it depends on the trainer. Buddy McGirt would have pulled him out at the end of the 3rd. Joe Gallagher would have been fuming with the ref for waving it off at the end. Would you have let Bute come out for the 5th? BTW crap british stoppage in the Selby fight.
Yes , I don't think Bute was done by the end of the 4th , yes he had shipped big shots in 3 and 4 but 5 was really the round where it was crystal clear Bute was not dealing with Froch's single right hands , his trainer stepped in just at the right time all things considered IMO
In hindsight, it might have been best if he hadn't come out for the first round! But I thought Bute and his team were very gracious in defeat, his trainer was very honest and open and for a world title fight I think they stopped it at just about the right time. I thought the referee was maybe a little late considering how close he was when Bute's head went on a rollabout, but I guess he was trying to give him every chance, and with two decent punchers in there the fight can turn pretty quickly so no grounds for complaint.
Bute was badly buzzed at the end of the 3rd, but started the 4th pretty well, so I don't mind too much that he was allowed to come out for the 5th after his beating in the 4th. I feel the ref was a little slow to stop the fight, however. The right hand that snapped his head back should have been the last punch. All credit to Bute and his team tho. Took the defeat very well. Credit to boxing
Maybe I'm being a bit sadistic here but I think stopping it before the start of the 5th would have been premature. It's a world title fight, he hadn't been dropped, he had been throwing back prior to the stoppage. Think the stoppage was fine.
It is a real balancing act. It is a dangerous situation but given the damage the loss does to Bute's career I would be inclined to have put him out. He took a battering at the end of the 3rd and 4th and still managed to have a decent start in the following round.
According to someone in the General, before the 5th round Larouche told Bute he was going to give him a minute to turn the fight around. I think that's fair enough. Froch was on him within about 30 seconds and Larouche was up on the canvass to stop the fight.
Watching it back the ref had words with Bute's corner at the end of the 4th Still stunned at that fight, what a performance by Froch
