Carl Froch: 'I'm Not Your Typical European Fighter'

Fanhouse.com Lem Satterfield31st March, 2010

"I think Arthur Abraham is going to really struggle with Andre Dirrell. I think Dirrell outboxes Abraham. Abraham's tough and strong, but I think Dirrell will beat him and then people will realize what a good job I did against Dirrell," Carl Froch, during an Oct. 26 interview with FanHouse.

WBC super middleweight (168 pounds) champion Carl Froch (26-0, 20 knockouts) already had defended his crown with a disputed, 12-round split-decision over Andre Dirrell (19-1, 13 KOs) on Oct. 17 before his hometown fans at Nottingham England's Trent FM Arena, when he predicted that Dirrell would handle Germany's previously Arthur Abraham (31-1, 25 KOs).

Having just earned a 12th round knockout of Jermain Taylor (28-4-1, 17 KOs) also on Oct. 17, Abraham was the second man to be dubbed the favorite to win Showtime's Super Six World Boxing Super Middleweight Classic.

But in this past Saturday's group state No. 2 match up, Dirrell dominated Abraham, who trailed, 97-92, on two judges' cards, and, 98-91, on the third before being disqualified in the 11th round for hitting Dirrell when he was down.

The first man who had been dubbed the favorite to win the tournament was Denmark's Mikkel Kessler (42-2, 32 KOs), but of course, that was before Kessler was dethroned in November as WBA titlist following a throughly dominant, 11th-round, technical decision by former Olympic gold medalist, Andre Ward (21-0, 13 KOs) in Ward's hometown of Oakland, Calif.

In December of 2008, Froch won the vacant WBC crown by dethroning previously unbeaten Jean Pascal, who has since won four straight and earned the WBC's light heavyweight (175 pounds) title. In April, Froch got up from a third-round knockdown to stop Taylor with 12 seconds left in the 12th round.

In this Q&A, the man nicknamed, "The Cobra," talks about the tournament results, his April 24 bout against Kessler, and other things.

FanHouse: Andre Dirrel over Arthur Abraham -- do you feel prophetic after having called that one way back in October?

Carl Froch: Well, it's because I boxed Dirrell, and I knew what Abraham brought to the table. And Dirrell just ran away like a girl when he boxed me. He was just running and holding. But he's a good figher -- he's got fast hands and he's got slick skills, and he used those skills and those fast hands to be negative against me.

But I knew that against Abraham, he was going to just punch the hell out of him, which he did for 10 rounds. But it was a shame the way that it finished for him, because I think that that takes a lot of confidence away from him, getting chinned in such a manner. But, yeah, I knew that he would beat Abraham.

But I'll be honest, I was hoping that Abraham was going to knock him out, and that's what happened, even though Dirrell did get the decision.

FH: Why did you want Arthur Abraham to knock out Andre Dirrell?

Froch: I'm not a big fan of Andre Dirrell and his attitude and what he stands for. But if you're talking boxing, when I say that he's a good fighter, he's got fast hands and slick skills. But that's just boxing. But if you're talking people, I wanted Abraham to win the fight and I wanted him to knock him out.

And I would say that that probably is personal, because Dirrell's a horrible person. At our press conference, I had to listen to a lot of his rubbish and a lot of his jive talk that a lot of people didn't hear, and I knew how he operated. People don't see that in the background, but I've seen it and I've gotten a taste of it and he's a horrible person.

FH: Do you think that Andre Dirrell was a better fighter against Arthur Abraham after having experienced a physical style against you that frustrated him?

Froch: Yeah, I think that that improved him. But the problem with Abraham is that he doesn't throw enough punches and doesn't put enough pressure on Dirrell. He almost gives makes it too easy for him by not working. Yes, he would have improved from the loss to me. And Abraham doesn't throw much and doesn't do much, and Dirrell got away without getting too much punishment.

FH: How much did fighting guys like Jean Pascal and Jermain Taylor, coming to America to knock out Taylor, how did those two wins help you to deal with any potential adversity in the ring?

Froch: I'm the world champion, and I'm the best in the world. I've got the attitude that I'll fight anybody, anytime, any place where necessary. At that stage in my career, Jermain Taylor made it quite clear that he wasn't going to come to England, so I went over to America with the right attitude and the right team -- myself and my trainer, Robert McCracken.

We did the job, did what we needed to do. I'm serious about boxing, and that's why I flew over to Connecticut to fight Jermain Taylor. I beat Pascal, who is now the WBC world champion at light heavyweight. And I knocked Taylor out, who wasn't at his best or the undisputed champion when I fought him, but he was still a good Taylor.

And then, I beat Dirrell, and everyone knows that Dirrell is a decent fighter. If people needed to see Dirrell totally outclass Abraham to validate my skills and my worth, then, that's their problem. I just switch off of the critics. People who don't give me the respect and the accolades I deserve, that's their problem.

FH: What were your thoughts when you were floored in the third round against Jermain Taylor?

Froch: I was a little bit slow at the start. Got caught with a shot, but that's a credit to my nerve and my experience -- the fact that I can keep a cool head under pressure in the face of adversity. To climb off of the canvas and perform the way that I did against Jermain Taylor, that wasn't a shot Jermain Taylor.

Taylor was coming off of a win against Jeff Lacy, and he had stepped into a new weight division where he felt comfortable at the weight, and he felt strong at the weight. And he was fighting an unknown white kid from England, by his own admission. So he came into that fight very, very comfortable and confident that he was going to win the title.

And he gave it a good shot. He gave it a very, very good shot, but I was too much for him in the end and I got him out of there.

FH: Why do you believe that Mikkel Kessler and Arthur Abraham lost so badly in fights where they were favored against Americans Andre Ward and Andre Dirrell?

Froch: There's nothing scientific about it, it's the old cliche that styles make fights. Andre Ward and Andre Dirrell were both too quick for Kessler and Abraham. They were just too quick for them. Too much movement, too fast, too fresh, and they just did what they had to do to win, it's as simple as that.

But it doesn't help to being stuck in Germany for your whole career, or being stuck in Denmark and not traveling. Because you don't travel well, and you're used to having it all in your favor and having it all go your way. Because a lot of times, the referees can lean toward the home favorite or the home guy, and the judges lean toward them a bit.

If Dirrell-Abraham was being scored in Germany, it would have been a lot closer, and they may have even had Abraham ahead, which would have been silly, really. Because to be fair and honest, Dirrell was clearly winning on points and had scored loads of shots and landed loads and loads of punches. He was winning clearly on points when he got hit with the foul blow.

FH: How are you different than Mikkel Kessler and Arthur Abraham?

Froch: I'm not your typical European fighter. People think, 'Europe,' and they think Britain, and they think Denmark and German. I'm not European, I'm English. And I've got my own style, and I bring my own game to the table. I've spent a bit of time in America training with the Americans and I've watched American fighters all of my life.

I watched American fighters coming up. The people who are enjoyed watching are the likes of Roy Jones Jr. in his day, and even Ray Leonard and Marvin Hagler. I was a big fan of Thomas Hearns. I'm made of different stuff than Kessler and Abraham. I have a different style altogether.

FH: How would you describe your style?

Froch: I'm quite elusive, I've got range, I can box. I'm a boxer-fighter. I can move. People don't give me a lot of credit for my boxing skills. But, you saw some of it against Andre Dirrell. He's a very fast boxer who throws a lot of different shots, and he's very technically quite good. But he was only able to hit me, probably, with two good shots for 12 rounds.

FH: Is there a difference between boxing and fighting?

Froch: Definitely. You've got to be able to stay calm under pressure and you've got to be able to able to fight. You've got to be able to anchor your feet to the ground sometimes. When you're in the trenches, taking grenades, you've got to come out, and you've got to come out swinging.

It's about being calm under pressure, knowing where you're at, knowing where your opponent is. You've got to be able to go back to your fighting and survival instincts. If you don't put yourself under pressure in sparring and training and you don't take the right fights on the way up in your career, and you hand-pick your opponents, then, eventually, you get found out.

I've been matched up through my whole career, from Day One, by my trainer and mentor, Robert McCracken, and he's matched me properly. My progression as a professional has been master minded correctly. I'm able to fight, and I'm able to box when necessary. And if it comes down to it, I'll take one on the granite chin and come back with two or three more.

Sometimes, you've got to take a couple of shots to get yours off, and that's boxing. You can't go out in the rain and not get wet.

FH: With Mikkel Kessler and Arthur Abraham left for you to fight, are you at an advantage having seen them lose?

Froch: They're going to be like wounded rabbits and they're going to come out fighting. They've got everything to lose. Especially Kessler in this next fight, he's just lost his world title. Now, he's got a straight shot at the WBC world title, which is not necessarily how it should be.

But the tournament says that's how it should be, and he's also fighting in his own back yard. It's worked out in his advantage, but the harsh reality is that he's just been beat, and he's been beat quite badly. He's just been outclassed. Now, I know that he got head-butted, but the fact of the matter is that he didn't win a round in that fight.

He got outclassed and beaten, and Andre Ward's not Roy Jones Jr. or Sugar Ray Leonard. Ward's a decent fighter, but not the best fighter I've ever seen. He's just a good fighter, and he's alright. He's quite ordinary, actually, but he beat Kessler comfortably. So Kessler comes into this fight beaten and dejected.

Does he really think that he's going to win the WBC title over the undefeated, reigning, defending knockout specialist, Carl Froch? If he thinks that, then he's mad. He's going to have a swing-off for six or seven rounds, but the harsh reality will set in when he starts getting hit, and I'm still there punching him back and hitting him with body shots and shots he's never been hit with before.

I'll still be there, looking him in the eye. And when he sees that mental stregth and that belief and that will to win, will he have what it takes and will he have it left in the tank? He's had a long career, Kessler, with over 40 fights, and I think that he's had his day. I'll probably be the finishing of him, to be honest.

Kessler's not going to be easy, and he'll mean business, coming up on his last hurrah. He'll have a real go, but I'm looking forward to getting back in there and showing everybody why I'm undefeated and why I'm the champion. I'm going to beat Kessler, and I'm going to beat Arthur Abraham, and I'm going to win the Super Six