Froch happy to defend belt against Groves

Carl Froch only has eyes for Andre Ward, but he is ready to give domestic rival George Groves a shot as he bides his time for a rematch with the American super-middleweight king.

The IBF and WBA super-middleweight champion gained revenge against former conqueror Mikkel Kessler in an epic war in London last month and is desperate to secure a rematch with Ward, the only other man to beat him.

However, he realises any scrap with Ward is around a year away and he would be willing to make a defence of his belts against unbeaten Hammersmith fighter Groves.

Froch said: “Going forward, the best win for me now and the only win that would be totally satisfying for me would be to rematch Andre Ward.

“But I don’t think that is in our immediate plans, that will be two or three fights down the road.

“I’ve got mandatory obligations with the IBF and I’m now WBA champion. So I’m just going to see what pans out and what opens up. Every man and his dog is calling me out, even that Welsh kid [Nathan Cleverly], who is insignificant because he’s not even in my weight division.

“He’s making plenty of noise recently and it’s just ridiculous. A lot of these guys are just embarrassing themselves, because they’re saying stupid things. But I’ll let them carry on, I’ll sit back and bask in the ambience, keep smiling and taking the accolades and the pats on the back. I’m just enjoying it all.”

A rivalry is brewing between Froch and young pretender Groves, with the latter helping Dane Kessler prepare for the fight with his fellow Briton and a few sniping comments following as a result. Groves is expected to be installed as the mandatory challenger for Froch’s IBF belt and ‘The Cobra’ is willing to give his rival a chance.

“I don’t know how easy it is to make the Groves fight,” Froch said. “Of course it’s winnable, as is every fight.

“It’s definitely a fight I want. I’ve said before I’m not just going to give him a shot, but if he becomes mandatory — which I think he might do by default because of guys above him being injured or moving in weight — then yes. If he’s mandatory and has a chance to fight me, then he should take it and I’ll happily defend my belt against him.

“I’ll fight anybody, including what’s his name? Groves?”

The all-English showdown would attract significant interest, but Froch is unsure whether Groves has proved himself sufficiently just yet.

“I’m not so sure at the minute — would it sell?” Froch said. “Who has George Groves boxed? He hasn’t boxed anybody in the top 15 in the world. So are people going to buy into that at the minute? I don’t think so.”