CARL FROCH on… When he may return
I think August, September would be a good time and that could almost be a cut-off time for me. If something don’t happen by then I’ll seriously consider calling it a day. If I lost a decision against someone I really should be beating, it’d be awful to have to keep boxing on to try to prove something. I’m in a fantastic position, very, very content, very satisfied and unbelievably happy with what I’ve achieved in my career, so I’m just in a brilliant place.
CARL FROCH on… his time away from boxing
I’ve got a great team around me, there’s no pressure off [trainer] Robert McCracken, Eddie Hearn’s not bothered either way – if I fight on, if I retire – so I’ll sit back and see what opens up. I’m keeping myself in great shape. The rest is doing me good, my elbows and arms have never felt so good. A lot of boxers get dodgy elbows and mine played up in training for the potential Chavez fight in March which obviously I pulled out of because of injury to my right elbow. All my aches and pains in my joints feel like they’ve had a long-overdue rest. If I do decide to fight again, it’ll be interesting to see how I respond in camp, training-wise. I could feel unbelievably fantastic physically or like, ‘Bloody hell, this is hard work.’ I think I’ll feel great if I do start back up. I’m ticking over now but I’m talking about being in the boxing gym, sparring decent fighters and really putting myself through the strength and conditioning. I think the rest’s probably done me more good than harm.
CARL FROCH on… Andrzej Fonfara beating targeted opponent Julio Cesar Chavez Jnr
Fonfara’s not going to get big credit for beating Chavez, because people will say he was out of his weight division, he’s not really set the world alight a middleweight anyway, so you’re not proving a great deal by beating him, but it was still a great, intriguing match-up for me and it would have certainly got me motivated, fighting in Vegas. But you can’t go through life looking in hindsight – what if he’d won? What if I’d fought him in March? – but I really couldn’t care less.
CARL FROCH on… James DeGale-Andre Dirrell on April 23
DeGale’s more skilful than brutal. Olympic gold medallist, skilful, fast hands, not a massive puncher, tough enough. If he’s going to sit back on ropes, especially against someone like me, he’s going to get hit hard and often, you can’t soak up them kind of shots. You worry for DeGale, if he’s prepared to sit there and tough it out at the top level, he might just get wiped out. But I’m not sure Dirrell’s going to do that. He’ll try a tactical, skilful boxing mission. It’s a really, really interesting fight that, the first test for DeGale and if he comes through he’s definitely arrived.
CARL FROCH on… partner Rachael and their family
She’s five months pregnant now, due in September. We just missed the school year; I’m gutted. We have a boy, Rocco, and a girl, Natalia, so this time we’re going to have a surprise, there’s not many things in life you can have surprises with.
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