Groves revealed in press conference he will end the fight with a left hook…
Ahead of the highly-anticipated rematch between Carl Froch and George Groves, we analyse both sides of the contest and discuss the keys to victory.
While Groves stopped short of providing us with his entire gameplan this time round, he did indulge slightly as promised and revealed which punch he intends on knocking Froch out with.
The 26-year-old insists that it will be a left hook as both he and trainer Paddy Fitzpatrick have identified that as an area of weakness on the Froch defence, although it may well be a bluff and that sharp right hand could be the one to do the damage.
Nevertheless, the challenger will have obtained a significant amount of confidence from the first meeting, and coupled with the fact that his speed, footwork and technical ability will undoubtedly cause Froch problems, it is no surprise that many experts are unable to call the bout one way or the other.
Former trainer Adam Booth suggested recently that Groves arguably got greedy as the fight went on and engaged too much with his opponent, and ultimately that played into the hands of Froch who finished strong and forced the controversial stoppage.
Such is the skill set of Groves, he has proven in the past that he is more than capable of boxing off the back foot and countering what his opponent throws at him. While that is unlikely in this fight given his confidence in hurting Froch, many see a real slug-fest from the opening bell in the centre of the ring.
That is where Groves will have his best chance of winning, and despite his claims that his training camp has prepared him for the fight to go the distance, there are doubts that he will be able to do so on fight night at the ferocious pace at championship level while taking shots from Froch.
As a result, his prediction of a ‘Hagler-Hearns’ style fight could come to fruition, but if he doesn’t deliver on his promise of knocking Froch out, he will have to press and finish the job in either the fifth or sixth rounds that Fitzpatrick has suggested.
The challenger has been supremely confident through the build-up to both fights, although he may well have really got the attention of his opponent this time round and potentially has missed out on his biggest opportunity after dropping Froch but then being unable to go on and secure the win.
Froch will want to get back to his usual comfort zone, take the centre of the ring and force Groves back. If Groves meets him there and uses his ring craft and speed, then this could be over far too quickly.
Prediction: Groves to claim a stoppage win between rounds 1-3.
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