Serious debate: Can Froch be finished? Can Kessler do it? How good is Carl Froch?

You do raise some interesting points especially the ones regarding Froch's improvements. I do believe Carl has improved a little bit since the Kessler defeat and learnt a lot about not loading up on single punches in his defeat against Ward. The Bute fight highlighted the improvement in his combination punching, had he not faced the elusive Ward before that point he may not have blasted Bute out in quite emphatic fashion. One of the many things i admire about Froch and his trainer specifically is the ability to go back to the drawing board and to improve on areas that were once weak, the Ward fight may have been a blessing in disguise. The combinations are smoother, not as clunky with his movements and not as much emphasis on loading up with single shots. The improvements would be clear regardless of opposition in my honest opinion.

With regards to Kessler declining i believe this to be true, without going into too much detail this has been evident withing his last couple of efforts. His biggest hope is that Froch's punch resistance is starting to decline due to his age and the high level he's been operating at for a while now. Im sure Montoya is working on a gameplan to stop Carl in his tracks with hard body shots and jabs to the chest area, if Kessler can keep Carl on the backfoot (which i dont think he can anymore) he may be able to bring hard straight right and the booming left hook into play, but as we saw with the 1st fight Carl is one tough ****er who wont be put off in the slightest by a big shot or two.

 

I don't think Froch is really 35 in boxing terms. He seems to be physically improving with every fight and I think that is a big reason why he has continued to slightly improve. The fact that he carries very little weight between fights is a massive thing because he doesn't abuse his body like other fighters. I've said it in previous threads and I'll say it again its unbelievable to think that Ricky Hatton is younger than Carl Froch!

 

i dont think kessler can beat him let alone finish him but by the end of the year i reckon george groves will be ready

 

Kenny Anderson put Groves down so that doesn't bode well for him if he fights Froch.

 

Froch wins late round stoppage. I can just see Kessler been busted open again since his eyes are ****ed thanks to Andre "Headbutt" Ward

Which is a shame, because this could easily be a fight of the year contender. So my prediction is late stoppage or Froch winning on points. I love Kessler, he's one of my favs but I just don't think he has what it takes to stop Froch.

 

I don't think he has improved THAT much either, nor do I think Kessler has declined to an extent where Froch can beat him close but clear. Hell, I'm not sure Froch can still beat him at all, my money is on Kessler, but I can see why others pick Froch.

It's not so much that Abraham is a stereotypical European fighter, it's just that he's pretty **** at supermiddle in terms of world level, but it was a good performance from Froch (MANY people picked Abraham to blitz him)

The Johnson MD was harsh, Carl clearly won that fight

Against Ward, well, he was outclassed as expected but I think he did in fact learn from that fight.

Then came Bute, I'll admit, I thought Bute would outbox Froch, not just because Bute to me looked very good, but also because Froch was coming off a pretty confidence shattering defeat. I should have known better than to question the "Warrior" himself, he absolutely blitzed Bute and it was an exciting thing to see, Bute just wilted under both Carls pressure, and the big occassion. Still, to call Bute "awful" is over-stating it a bit.


Now Kessler is obviously not the same fighter the great Joe Calzaghe beat, but he's far, far from finished. He still brings the pain. One thing about Kessler that has noticeably declined is his speed and most of all, reactions. A worrying thing in the Allan Green fight was how he stopped using his jab and started throwing a pretty telegraphed left hook over and over again. Green somehow still managed to get himself KO'd by this.

Against Magee, Kessler looked better and much sharper, one of the reasons for this I believe was that he was very motivated to fight the "Dane Killer" and he had gotten his confidence back after the Green KO. There is no question that Kessler is going to be bang up for this fight, and I have a feeling he's going to turn back the clock and win a close but clear fight in another war with Froch

Can he stop Froch? I doubt it although with Kesslers power anything is possible? Despite Froch being hurt not only by Taylor but by Dirrell, you cant fight like him and not expect to be buzzed once in a while. And let's face it, he has already went toe to toe with Kessler who hits much harder than those two, but maybe Frochs wars will catch up to him on the night? If anybody can do it, its certainly Kessler

How good is Carl Froch? Well we all know how tough he is, how determined he is, and how much heart he has, but as Tarver says, "he has subtle skills". Remember, Froch was a world amateur bronze medallist, you don't win those things with toughness alone, you gotta have skills, and he does, he just has one of those styles that makes it hard to spot.

He's definately a top world class fighter, but so is Kessler still, should be a good one.

 

Those eyes are certainly a concern thanks to the ****ing billygoater, Ward should have been pulled for that way more than he was after the fight, he did permanent damage to Kessler

 

I'm not sure Froch has improved, that remains to be seen if he fights Ward again. I think Froch does look more fresh and hungry. I think Kessler is on the slide, Bute was well overrated and I couldn't believe he was the favourite. Kessler will leave himself wide open to a sustained attack, I don't think Froch will get KOd by Kessler. My money is on a Froch win in rounds 7-9.

 

Froch SHOULD win this. He could of won the first one but his timing seemed of and he couldnt seem to pull the trigger.

Since then Froch has improved and Kessler has gone downhill. Kessler is also plagued by injuries and the cuts caused by Billy Goat Ward are a concern.

Plus although not in Nottingham, Froch has home support which does make a difference.

 

Froch is much more experienced, he's improved physically too, on home soil, I favour him quite strongly in this rematch.

OP you can't just label his opposition (Bute, Abraham) as awful because he beat them so easily. Revisionism at its finest.

And the question can Froch be taken out, well, anyone can. But Taylor caught him quite cold due to a mix of, well, stage fright - and a habit of starting slow. Froch has corrected both those factors IMO.

 

I think Froch is overated when it comes to people calling him an all time great, one of the reasons is that people rate him so highly is his courage to fight the best, the fact he going in for a rematch with Kessler shows courage as its not a fight he is favoured to win.

That said i believe Froch will win a highly disputed decision, would not be surprised to see a 3rd fight later this year.