cleverly v froch.

hawkeyethenoo

so cleverly has called out froch on twitter saying he go down to super middle for this. Id really fancy cleverly for this and think he would beat him on points. hes too slick for froch imo. id say most people wud pick froch but i think hes so overrated.

was losing to a past it taylor before the ko, lost to dirrell imo, lost to ward, lost to kessler(beat a finished kessler), had trouble with glen johnson. I think pascal was a good night for him and bute/abraham but those two have been exposed as not world class. froch is a good fighter but he is such a limited fighter with an overated chin and terrible defence

walshb

I would lean with Cleverly. But, getting to 168 lbs could hinder him. He seems to have a bit too much for Froch in all areas.

el flaco

I don't know what to make of Cleverly? While he's unbeaten he hasn't had any defining fights. He seems to be plodding along in a fairly forgettable division. Moments like this are good for him to try and raise his profile. While Froch lost to Kessler and Ward those are both better fighters than Cleverly. It's been a while since I've seen Cleverly, but last time I did, he was much easier to pressure and get to than the fleet-footed fighters Froch struggled against, so I would fancy Froch as I don't think Cleverly could really hurt him.

People are having a pop at Froch for calling out Ward and sounding arrogant but that's the business. Cleverly and Groves are doing the same thing now. I don't think either of them really belong in the ring with Froch, or at least not yet anyway, but you need to talk the talk. It's difficult to get big fights or generate interest if you tell everyone you think the guy you're chasing is fantastic and that he'd probably beat you.

gaybeer

I'm not so sure about Cleverly. Bellew rocked him to his boots a couple of times, in a fight when he got hit clean a good few times.I think Froch may have a bit to much for him, particularly at 168.

HigginsJ

I reckon Froch would win in a late stoppage but I doubt it's a fight that he'd have much interest in. Cleverly (or Groves for that matter) are not on the same level at the moment. If I were one of those 2 I'd try get it on against Bute and that would be there best avenue to Froch.

T-K-O

Every time I watch Cleverly I feel cheated. Froch would out work him and win by UD

Big Ears

When I first started reading this thread I thought the whole boxing world had become delusional !
Cleverly is getting by as a Frank Warren promoted WBO champion in a very poor Light-heavyweight division.

Chad Dawson being it's champion and Tony Bellew being a serious contender at the weight tells you all you need to know,and just incase it doesn't I'll elborate for a second:
A division where Vyacheslav Uzelkov was a contender, a division where a European level Super-Middleweight managed to become a World title holder and top fighter in Campillo (okay he's not a bad fighter, but nor is he true World class), a division where old man Hopkins can still run riot, a division where Tavoris Cloud can win 5 title fights on the trot.
A division where Jean Pascal is able to beat multiple contenders (Adrian Diaconu, Aleksy Kuziemski) with one arm.....literally !
A division where a green, 10 fight Beibut Shumenov managed to grab a title.
The division is so poor, Danny McIntosh managed to win the European title !!!

Anyway I think I've made my point, awful division, and even within that division half of Cleverely's title fight opponents haven't even been European level. The last 3 to be specific, and that's probably because he struggled badly with 2 of the first 3 (and the other was a British stoppage)
Cleverly has some good points, he's got a great engine, is very big at the weight, and seems to have a decent chin on him.

However him vs Froch only goes one way, and that is very similar to the Bute fight. Taking a massive beating until he finally caves somewhere around the mid point, I really don't think he has a hope, and in fact I think Hopkins would take him apart.

FTA69

Big Ears is spot on. Honestly lads I don't think a Froch win would ever be in doubt. Froch, whatever you think of him, has proved himself in one of the best divisions in the sport against some of the toughest characters in boxing. He has beaten Abraham and Kessler as well as annihalting Lucian Bute. Those three boxers alone are far superior opponents to anyone Cleverly has faced. Cleverly, on the other hand, can count the likes of Bellew or Murat as his toughest opponents. His last two defences were against Krasniqi (a man who beat nothing but tin cans) and Hawk (?) who is a complete nobody. His KO ratio is also quite poor and a lack of power is one thing you don't want to bring to the table against Froch.

Is Froch a bit overrated? Perhaps, but he has managed to walk the walk nonetheless. And he'd KO Cleverly within 8 rounds for sure. They're on completely different levels.

walshb

At 168 lbs, yes, I would lean with Froch, but if it's at 175 lbs where Cleverly is natural, then it's not a gimme for Froch.

FTA69

At SMW Froch would KO him easily á la Bute. I still think Froch would beat him at LHW.

DaithiMa

I don't know how anyone could think Cleverly would have what it takes to beat Froch. He is going down the same route as Joe Calzaghe, and must be one of the most protected world champions out there at the moment. As somebody said earlier, the fact that he struggled with Bellew is a clear indication that he is nowhere near Froch's level. Another fight I would point to is the Nadjib Mohammedi fight, when to be honest I thought the decision could have gone either way, and on my scorecard I had Mohammedi by 2 rounds. Not only would Froch beat him, I reckon Hopkins would have his measure too. Until Cleverly steps up and beats some worthy opponents he doesn't even deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as Froch.