Froch V Calzaghe. A Close Fight?

Just watching Eubank's fight with Joe and the two after against a CW beast, I don't feel Eubank was as shot as he is made out to be. Also, that was not prime Calzaghe that beat him. Harder hitting Joe? For sure, but he was young and raw. He became more slick later in his career.

 

Also, at the time a fight against Hopkins was a bigger fight than Froch would have been. I can't blame Joe for moving up and taking it.
Though I think there were more relevant fights for Joe than Jones Jr at the time, but as a Jones fan I liked that Calzaghe gave him a shot at glory to regain his title.

 

In my opinion, Joe shouldn't get criticised for fighting Hopkins instead of Carl. But he should get criticised for fighting Roy instead of Pavlik.

 

This.

:good

 

There's no way he was shot. But he was definitely faded. But what irks me a little, is that he'll happily list all of the factors that were involved in the Ward-Kessler fight, but he purposely won't do the same when discussing the Joe-Eubank fight.

Bailey is the 'King of Spin'

I've said it before and I'll say it again, he could be the world's best lawyer.

"Your defendant brutally shot 17 people in a vicious rampage."

"Well Your Honour, my defendant did fire his weapon, but the 17 people in question, were actually at fault for getting in the way of the bullets."

 

I agree, Hopkins schooled the man that dehtroned the P4P king and was still very much an elite fighter. I give Joe huge credit for that win although it was ugly..

I also agree that Pavlik was more feared than that version of Jones, but hindsight is a wonderful thing haha. Looking back, at least Jones Jr had a punchers chance, Calzaghe would have made Pavlik look pedestrian, I think he would be tailor made for Joe.

 

Hahaha. Sorry I have been posting from my phone lately and my big thumbs get it doing all kinds of weird stuff but that made me laugh!

 

I don't see it like that at all mate.

Joe fought him to massage his ego and to top up his pension fund.

The showboating was a disgrace. Because Joe would never have dared to have done such a thing to him when he was anywhere near his prime. When it came to Roy, he was a scavenger like Bernard was. At first, both of them said they didn't want anything to do with him because he was shot. Yet in the end, they just couldn't help themselves.

 

Oh I am with you that both saw Jones as little to no threat, but I had a little hope for Jones beating Calzaghe. It didn't work out but I enjoyed the build and the first half of the fight.

 

In my opinion, Joe would have absolutely embarrassed Kelly Pavlik with ease. And he'd have taken all of the plaudits that Hopkins took. He deserves no criticism for not fighting Carl. And Carl ended up in the exact same situation with James DeGale.

The Pavlik situation was a complete joke though. Joe told the media that he'd offered Pavlik a fight directly after he'd beaten Lacy in 2006. And at that point, Pavlik had done absolutely nothing. He was an unknown, NABF champ. Yet in 2008, when he had achieved something and he was a big name, Joe said he had no interest in him because he hadn't done enough to warrant a fight. And then he went on to fight Roy instead, even after he'd said it would be pointless because Roy was finished as a top level guy.

Bailey will gladly sweep all of the above under the carpet along with the Eubank factors.

 

It was after Calzaghe that I realized Jones was completely gun shy against elite level fighters and gave him no chance against Hopkins. I am way more critical over Hopkins taking the fight, being as how he turned down a huge offer to fight Roy at a catchweight and basically admitted later that the weight was never a problem.

 

:good

 

I enjoyed the build up, they were both very respectful of each other. But the showboating just killed it. It was cringeworthy.

 

I agree.

:good

 

List them.

His best win by far is Froch, and well earned. I'll take Bute, Kessler II, Taylor, Abraham, Dirrell, Groves x2, Pascal over Kessler's resume without a 2nd thought. It's crystal clear whose resume is better. Kessler was a good fighter, but his resume was never considered great, unlike Froch's is.