Froch vs Groves, in perspective

On November 23rd Froch and Groves put on quite a spectacular war which saw both men rocked on many occasions but sadly it ended in controversy. Groves came out aggressive, backing Froch up for most of the round. Both fighters seemed to fight on even terms until Groves nailed Froch mid exchange, right on the chin, and sent him down hard and in serious trouble. Groves could not finish a very unsteady Froch in the first and certainly gained his respect. The fight was quite literally a war, every round after that each fighter took turns landing their best, so much so that I myself was feeling it! In the 9th round Froch seemed to really turn it on, hurting Groves seriously. Before Groves ever even went down or Froch could finish him off, the referee inexplicably stepped in and waved it off, despite the protests from Groves. I will say this, I would much rather a fight be stopped too early than too late. In hindsight, yes maybe it was a bit too premature, but its better than too late. These guys will likely lace up and duke it out again, had it been a late stoppage perhaps Groves never would have laced up again.

Groves impressed me last night. I never seen him fight and did not even bother posting an analysis of the fight as I assumed Froch would walk through him. To my surprise he nearly got beat in the first stanza. I do not think it was that Froch was an old 36 but that Groves is on his level. Froch did what Froch does, its just that Groves was clearly underestimated and well prepared for the task at hand. The rematch will tell if this was a fluke or if Groves is the real deal.