Carl Froch Q&A

Nottingham Evening Post Ray Yoemans11th March, 2010

Ray Yeomans: I know you plan meticulously. Has the fight being put back a week affected your preparations?

Carl Froch: Not at all, I will simply taper my approach to the camp a little differently to ensure my conditioning will be 100% - as it always is. I've already made a few strides with my trainer Rob (McCracken) in Sheffield and we will have it all sewn up for Kessler on the 24th.

RY: Is Kessler gambling by changing his trainer so close to the fight?

CF: I don't think so. It would seem they already knew each other for quite a while and this guy has been part of the camp for his previous fights.

It won't make any odds. As long as this guy Montoya knows how to throw in a towel, that's all Mikkel will be requiring from him on the night.

RY: You were dead set against fighting at Herning because of the fans. Is this round one to Kessler?

CF: Being completely honest with you, I'd say it's round one to Kessler's fans more than the man himself. The location might have put a few folk off, but it's as simple to get to as Copenhagen...same airline and airport from the UK. The objection was all to do with my fans who had already booked flights to Copenhagen and nothing to do with where I spank Kessler.

RY: Kessler is talking of having 10,000 fans cheering for him. Does this worry you?

CF: The fans don't worry me. It makes for a great atmosphere. I'm going to be playing the bad guy and I am relishing it.

Me and Mikkel have respect outside of the ring and I'm sure his fans respect what I bring into this fight. But they will know they have to get behind their man in a big way, which in turn will mean booing me on the way to the ring.

It's part and parcel of boxing and I'm looking forward to seeing how loud they can shout. I'm not going to say the old cliché about 'silencing the crowd' but trust me, I'm coming to win and win big.

RY: Have you spotted flaws in his defeats by Calzaghe and Ward that you can exploit?

CF: Well the fight with Calzaghe, you have got to give the guy credit for fighting in front of 50,000 in Calzaghe's hometown and he did it with a dodgy right hand.

The Ward fight was ugly and inconclusive. Kessler doesn't really have any flaws and is a good all-rounder. So injury played a part in both of those fights. I don't head butt, I don't clinch and grab - and I'm unaware of Mikkel having any hand problems. I'm expecting Mikkel at his best.

RY: Who will you be sparring with ahead of the fight?

CF: A couple of technical middleweights for sharpening myself up - and then, as usual, with some light-heavyweights and possibly a young, fast cruiserweight who can really bang. A collection of decent fighters who will do a couple of rounds each, then swap.

RY: What do you think about Allan Green coming straight into the SuperSix?

CF: Showtime is an American station and the lion's share of the audience is therefore American. Technically, he is more similar to the guy who he is replacing and has been bubbling around super-middleweight scene for three or four years now.

Plus Lou Dibella promoted Jermain Taylor (who has pulled out) and also promotes Green, so that ensures he can remain involved. I think he has shown the ability and I look forward to watching him fight Ward next.

RY: Was Taylor right to quit the competition?

CF: Taylor is a great boxer - I mean he took on a wily fox in Hopkins over 24 rounds and got the win. His mind took a dent against Pavlik, but he showed courage to then get straight in there with a guy who dusted him and he didn't flinch for 12 rounds. In every fight he always started too fast and always won the first half big... too big, in fact.

With him having a wife and close family around him, you have got to take a step back and evaluate yourself. He is a wealthy man and popular with it.

If he decides to come back then maybe he needs to consider light-heavyweight if he is not handling the weight. But even if he does not, he has had a successful career at middleweight and will always be respected as someone who fought the very best of his era.

RY: Kessler says he will stop you. What's your prediction?

CF: It's a bluff. They know I'm strong and can punch hard. They know I can carry a shot and that I'm the bigger man on the night. I will tell you right now their plan. They will aim to try to outbox me over 12 rounds and hope that their 10,000 fans will shade any close rounds in their favour.

The WBC judges will do their job and me and Rob McCracken will do ours.

RY: Kessler is coming to the end of his career now. How much has he got left in the tank?

CF: He is just 30 years old and only had four fights in three years. Kessler's tank is full. Whether he wants to earn some money and retire soon is his business. But that's the wrong attitude to be in this sport. Those who think about money take their eye off the ball and get defeated.

I boxed all around the world for free - because I like a fight. The money will secure my family's future, which is a blessing.

Success in boxing is permanent, whereas money is temporary. People don't point at Mike Tyson and talk about how rich he was once, they are in awe as to what he produced inside the ropes and achieved in the sport.

RY: You are both warriors. Do you plan to stand toe-to-toe and slug it out and go for three points instead of two?

CF: If the knock-out comes, it comes. It may well happen because Mikkel will need to be prepared to go out on his shield to keep his dream alive.

RY: Any news of the Arthur Abraham fight yet? Will it be in England ?

CF: The signs are that it will be. But I'm only thinking about Kessler right now.

I wish Arthur well against slippery Dirrell and look forward to us both meeting in the ring, with our undefeated records intact.

That will be a war. Like Kessler, I have the utmost respect for him. When you watch him fight you wonder when he's going to spring to life. He can plod for rounds before opening up with his bombs.

He'll need to address that before we fight, definitely.

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