If the referee had any intention to really stop the fight, he should have come between the two fighters and not wait for Froch to push Groves to him in that sequence.
The referee also did a disservice to Froach for denying him the opportunity to score a clear KO win.
The IBF was correct in ordering an immediate rematch.
The thing is it's not Froch's fault Groves was robbed so I'm not sure the IBF needed to intervene here. I notice they haven't criticised the referee so I would like to hear the specific reason they give for awarding Groves a rematch.
Froch doesn't need the IBF title, he's WBA champion too and even without the belts we know he's one of the best Super Middleweights in the world. I read that Groves wants an 8 figure sum now? He lost, he's not a world champion, he's not really got any right to be demanding even half of what Froch is gonna be getting.
He needs to decide what's more important, becoming world champion or ￡10,000,000. If it's the latter then the deal might not be able to get made, he can have his ￡10,000,000 once he captures the world title and then fights Andre Ward or something but until then he needs to remember that he's not in that position.
Froch will lose face if he doesn't defend against Groves...
This fight has the forum evenly supporting each fighter... Some of the best contributors are siding with Froch, some with Groves...
In my opinion, this is a 50 / 50 fight... Froch has the experience, fitness and ring savvy, to take on the elite of the division...
Yet, my gut feeling, is that Froch is avoiding fighting Groves like the plague... As another contributor rightly pointed out, Froch is slowing down.. He has fought at the highest level for the last five years, you can only keep churning out best performances for so long... Old Father Time, is still unbeaten at every weight!!
Although the book records a Froch stoppage, there is no mention of the beating Froch took for most of the fight.. How will that affect him mentally?? His mental edge over George Groves is gone, it has been reversed if anything...
If it happens, it will be a great fight for boxing.
I suspect, that Froch will surrender his strap, and go looking for Chavez Jr in a final swan song to end his career on a high... Probably in the MGM in Las Vegas.
Groves beat Froch up badly in the first fight and Froch knows it.
The ref robbed Groves of a well deserved victory.
EDIT: Yes it happened again. There's this one guy with about 20 accounts who reports me non-stop.
Carl froch have to defend his belt within a 90 day period.
I'm picking Froch because he is the second best Super middleweight in my opinion. He should be able to finish Grooves in a more impressive fashion.
Groves turned his back twice when he was hurt. He turned his back when the ref jumped in. Don't get me wrong, it should have been let go on, and the fix was definitely in, but I don't think the stoppage was deserving of the outrage that it got.
Not too bad a stoppage. Groves would have got whooped in the later rounds anyway, Froch comes on really strong in the championship rounds.
*I stand corrected, but he was taking serious punishment in that round, his back was hunching more and I think he was wilting. I'd revise my opinion and say you could call it a "bad" stoppage but he was taking a lot of punishment.
*I think it was rounds 6 and round 8 where Groves turned his back slightly first.
I give the slight edge to George but it's 50-50.
Douche move by Froch to announce Groves has rejected an offer while they are still in negotiations, but at least the IBF made the right decision for once.
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/news/boxing-ibf-orders-froch-v-groves-rematch-182150374--box.html
