by Jon Campbell
Britain’s current P4P top ranked fighter Nottingham’s Super-Middleweight Carl ‘The Cobra’ Froch (29-2) has sealed his position in British boxing history by winning his third world title against the undefeated IBF champion Lucian Bute (30-1) in five impressive rounds. He now is in a great situation as he has numerous options going forward. Presuming Bute decides not to take up the rematch offer then in most likelihood a rematch with 2-time champion Mikkel Kessler (45-2) will occur in England. Going ahead from this I will outline his key options and whilst evaluating their desirability draw a conclusion as to what I would advise him.
Following Kessler, presuming he wins Froch should be top of the list to compete against the winner of the bout between Andre Ward (25-0) and Chad Dawson (31-1-0-2), he will be hoping to avenge Ward’s victory in the final of the Super Six but should Dawson win he will be looking to put his name on his already impressive resume. Should he decide to move up a number of options of big fights would open up to him. Another worthwhile fight would be the winner of Tavoris Cloud (24-0) and previous victim of Froch, Jean Pascal (26-2-1). Others potential fights could be WBO champion Nathan Cleverly (24-0) and all-time legend Bernard Hopkins (52-6-2-2). This division is rich in talent and even more so as many of the world-class super-middleweights have decided to move up. This route is arguably the most favorable due to the money to be earned and the volume of high-profile bouts to be made.
Secondly, one possibly tempting option would be to lure one or two of the better Middleweights up a weight-class to fight him for his title. The obvious candidate should he take this option would be the Argentine Middleweight Champ Sergio ‘Maravilla’ Martinez (49-2-2). This would be a great challenge but Froch should not strike anybody as the guy not willing to take on such fights. Also a good fight for the fans could occur should Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. (45-0-1-1) decide to come up taking into account his previous weight issues and have a fight with Froch. This option would be a good one but in my opinion I would not advise him to takes fight with Middleweights outside of the two fighters mentioned.
The third option would be to remain at Super-Middleweight and attempt to establish himself as one of the greatest at his weight class and go for the legacy left by the great Joe Calzaghe (46-0). This would involve taking down as many of the contenders and young up and comers as physically possible before he retires, alongside possible unification bouts. Names include George Groves (14-0), WBO Champ Robert Stieglitz (42-2), and the young rangy undefeated South African Thomas oosthuizen (19-0-1). These fights would be more legacy building in the sense that he can attempt to establish himself as one of the best Super-Middleweights ever. However, in comparison to many fights he can take it is not the big pay day he may wish for.
To conclude, the future looks bright for Froch regardless of his result against Kessler. I would advise him after Kessler to challenge one of the two Middleweights mentioned to come up briefly but not to hang around. Following this I would advise him to take the step up in weight and firstly attempt to become a two-weight world champion, secondly to aim for the biggest fights possible in order to establish his legacy and leave himself financially secure.
