Two European hard cases go head-to-head in Helsinki tomorrow night when Carl Froch and Arthur Abraham face off in a Super Six bout to determine second fiddle to Andre Ward on the World Boxing Classic scoreboard.
Froch, whose paranoia about judges forced this fight into the boxing hinterland of Monaco before a back injury sent it scuttling along to Helsinki, has been a sneering presence during the buildup of the fight, threatening to break ribs, calling himself ruthless and coldhearted, and saying ?I am going to stuff him,? meaning Abraham, ?like a chicken.? Even his wife, Rachael Cordingley, threw out her certificate of politeness, calling Abraham ?The Midget King.?
For his part, Abraham has threatened to behead Froch in the ring. ?Froch has insulted my promoter, my team and me,? Abraham also said. ?I will punish him for that on Saturday. It will be a great fight between two warriors. I cannot wait to get my hands on him and make him pay for all the rubbish he has said in the press.?
If both parties bring that kind of hostility to Finland, then the Hartwall Arena might see plumes of smoke pouring out of its doorways within a few rounds of the opening bell. The fact that both fighters are coming off of losses might also make them fight with a hint of desperation.
Once described here as ?a dropout from the Brendan Ingle School of Tomfoolery,? Froch, is the boxing equivalent of a particularly intricate crop circle. His success practically defies explication. Poor balance, awkward punching, lack of coordination, iffy defense, and a chin that floats in mid-air big as a zeppelin are only some of the flaws evident whenever Froch plies his mysterious trade. Although Froch, 26-1, shifts and dekes occasionally, defense is certainly not his forte. If anything, Mikkel Kessler might have proved that he does, indeed, suffer from double vision by missing Froch, virtually a walking target, so often during their fight last April.
On the other hand, boxing is not always a bonanza for the most skilled, and Froch has the market cornered on intangibles: resilience, endurance, determination, and heart are attributes Froch retains in abundance. He also owns an anvil for a chin and hits hard enough to deter most fighters.
From time to time Abraham, 31-1 (25), uses foot feints to try to create openings, but he rarely deviates from his predictable plod, block, and punch method. What was once considered an idiosyncratic style may now be seen for what it is?a flawed if effective approach to fighting and one ready to be exploited by boxers with a certain amount of flash. True, Abraham did box surprisingly well against Edison Miranda in their 2008 rematch, but Miranda can be outboxed by a stone gargoyle. Usually Abraham, Berlin, Germany, moves around the ring like a man suffering from trenchfoot and fleet fighters like Andre Dirrell will always be able to box rings around him for long stretches of time. Ultimately, Abraham has proven himself to be fairly one-dimensional in the ring. In addition, when he goes on the attack, he has the tendency to throw wide hooks, and Froch will look to plug the gap with one of his strangely placed shots, a left hook, perhaps, or a right uppercut that looks like it was inspired by cricket bowlers. Although Froch, Nottingham, England, is not nearly as mobile as Dirrell, he is far more athletic than Abraham and will likely build up an early points lead.
Froch has also promised to attack Abraham?whose guard resembles the posture of a man completing a pull-up?to the body. Unfortunately, this means Froch will be leaving his already unprotected chin out in the open for Abraham to swat at. A right cross or left hook from Arthur Abraham is not something to freely invite, especially when one considers the fact that Abraham is an accurate puncher.
Neither man is worth his weight as an infighter, although Froch, 33, will work a little harder throwing rabbit punches and shoulder butts on the inside. In close quarters Froch out to be able to accumulate some damage on Abraham, whose inside game is less threatening that that of a Moomin Troll. Still, Froch is often such a straight-up target that one wonders if even Abraham, 30, might take a poke or two at him when the two fighters break from clinches.
Perhaps the deciding factor in the fight will be the power Abraham brings into the ring with him. Hands down, chin up, and square on is no way to face a big puncher, and Froch will always only be one false move or two away from disaster. Abraham has scored five late round stoppages in his career?including three in the last round?and is dangerous for every second of every fight. Even Andre Dirrell seemed to be feeling the effects of his shots before the fatal DQ blow ended matters. The feeling here is that Froch will give Abraham too many opportunities to score with big shots, particularly straight rights.
Eventually, Abraham will tag Froch, with emphasis, and then Froch will have to show just how resilient he is in the ring. Perhaps not resilient enough. Abraham via late TKO in what should turn into a bloody war.
