CARL FROCH READY TO TAKE ON MIKKEL KESSLER DESPITE EAR INFECTION
Kevin Mitchell

Herning guardian.co.uk
Friday 23 April 2010 20.18 BST

Nottingham fighter plays down problem before world defence ‘I need
to be more of an animal in ring,’ says Kessler

Carl Froch, right, faces up to Denmark’s Mikkel Kessler at the weigh-in
in Herning. Photograph: John Gichigi/Getty Images

Carl Froch knows there is more than his unbeaten record and WBC
super-middleweight title on the line against Mikkel Kessler in the
quiet depths of rural Denmark tomorrow night. As he moves into the
third section of Showtime’s Super Six Series to find the world’s best
12-stone fighter, he is seeking to extend a sequence of wins against
elite boxers that would lift him above any British world champion of
recent times.

After six years on the periphery of the big time, the 32-year-old
Nottingham fighter strung together victories of varying types and
quality against the tough young Jean Pascal, followed by a still
competitive Jermain Taylor and the awkward American prospect Andre
Dirrell – with Kessler and the remarkable Armenian Arthur Abraham
to come.

If he wins at a packed Messencenter against Kessler, who gave Joe
Calzaghe such a fright in 2007, Froch would probably meet the slick
Andre Ward, who so embarrassed the Dane in Oakland last November.

After that, depending on where he stands in the points table, he
would again fight Dirrell – who was gifted a late disqualification
win over Abraham but had looked impressive in the earlier rounds.

On top of that demanding schedule, Froch has also promised Pascal
a rematch, which would be for the Canadian’s WBC light-heavyweight
title. If there is a shopping list better than that over the past 30
years or so, it has escaped the notice of this writer.

"He’s already achieved his goals," his trainer, Robert McCracken,
said at the weigh-in, where the champion hit the scales a pound under
the 12st limit and Kessler weighed a quarter of a pound less. "This
is the icing on the cake now, the next three fights especially. He’s
looking at the finish line and he can’t wait to get into the ring."

It is going to be as physically demanding a challenge as the Pascal
bout – voted fight of the year in 2008 – and Froch is against a
seasoned opponent of proven pedigree fighting in front of 10,000 of
his own fans, and a long way from Nottingham. This is the lightest
Kessler has weighed in 14 fights over the past eight years. If he
is nearing the exit after looking poor against Ward, there has been
little evidence of it in his preparation.

"I’ll need to be more of an animal in the ring," the popular Dane
said. "I’ve been working on my footwork and have done 174 rounds
of sparring. Maybe I have been too nice before." Not many of his 44
opponents in a distinguished career would agree with that. Kessler is
among the best Europeans to have fought and won at world level at 12
stone, a former WBA champion who clearly wants to repair the damage
done when he lost that title.

Despite an injury scare which proved to be little more than worries
about an ear infection, Froch could hardly have had a better lead-up,
either. There’s nothing like a "mystery injury" to lend spice to a big
fight and Froch created a minor stir in little Herning when he revealed
he would be going in against Kessler with the sort of undisclosed
"niggle" that has been almost a badge of honour throughout his career.

Froch prides himself on his ability to handle pain, from minor surgery
without anaesthetics to getting through a fight with a broken hand,
which he has done twice. This would not seem to be in that class.

Although he refused to talk about it, he is thought to have injured
his ear in sparring and had it checked for any infections before
being been passed fit to fight. "He’s fine," McCracken said. "It
happened ages ago. He will always have minor injuries because he
trains right on the weight six weeks before a fight. That can make
you more susceptible to small cuts and the like because he hardly
has any body fat. It can make sparring a nightmare.

"But he has been in fantastic form in the gym and has been knocking a
few of them over. He’s been sparring with the likes of Danny McIntosh
[English light-heavyweight champion], Colin Fish [the Canadian amateur
star] and George Groves [the new Commonwealth super-middleweight
champion]. George was really good, with a great attitude, but I pulled
him out after a couple of rounds because Carl would just do too much
damage. Fish, who is a bit of a superstar over there, went back after
a week."