Carl Froch proves too strong for George Groves at Wembley

Carl Froch defeated George Groves for a second time at Wembley Stadium six years ago.
Carl Froch celebrates after knocking down George Groves during the IBF and WBA World Super Middleweight Title fight at Wembley Stadium, London in 2014. Pic by PA.Carl Froch celebrates after knocking down George Groves during the IBF and WBA World Super Middleweight Title fight at Wembley Stadium, London in 2014. Pic by PA.
Carl Froch celebrates after knocking down George Groves during the IBF and WBA World Super Middleweight Title fight at Wembley Stadium, London in 2014. Pic by PA.

The 36-year-old produced a sensational knockout to see off the challenger and hold on to his WBA and IBF super middleweight belts.

Rematch

The pair had fought in Manchester six months earlier with younger man Groves upsetting the favourite early on. Froch admitted he had taken Groves lightly after being floored in the first round and outboxed in the early stages, before triumphing courtesy of a controversial ninth-round stoppage.

Post-War record

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An 80,000 sell-out crowd descended on Wembley. It was the biggest British boxing attendance since 90,000 watched Len Harvey and Jock McAvoy fight for the British light heavyweight belt in London’s White City Stadium in 1939.

Reputation at stake

Froch brought a record of 32 wins and two defeats to the ring, with 23 knockouts, compared with Groves’ 19-1 (15KOs). The Nottingham fighter won his first world title in 2008 and had nine successful world title fights to his name. But he knew his legacy was at stake in the domestic contest as 26-year-old Groves looked to step up a level.

The fight

It proved a generally cagier contest than the first fight with little between the two men until it erupted in the eighth round. As Groves let his guard slip for a split second, Froch unleashed the shot which saw the challenger crumple to the canvas unconscious.

The future

Froch described the winning shot as “the best punch of my life” and it proved to be his last. An elbow injury forced him to pull out of a Las Vegas swansong against Julio Cesar Chavez and he announced his retirement in July 2015. Groves suffered defeat in his third world title challenge, against Badou Jack, but patience paid off in May 2017 when he defeated Fedor Chudinov to claim the WBA title. The Londoner defended it against Jamie Cox and Chris Eubank Jr before suffering defeat in his last fight against Callum Smith in the World Boxing Super Series final.

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