Groves to face Froch in world title clash

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George Groves will challenge Carl Froch for the world super-middleweight title later this year. 

The fight is expected to take place on 23 November, with the venue soon to be confirmed.

Nottingham’s IBF champion Froch, 36, has long been mooted as a possible opponent for the unbeaten Groves, 25, who is currently Commonwealth champion and has also held the British title.

Groves, from Hammersmith, was initially expected to take on WBO title holder Robert Stieglitz ahead of a possible showdown with Froch next year.

But he was subsequently installed as the IBF’s mandatory challenger and Eddie Hearn, who promotes both fighters, recently revealed that talks were taking place with a view to the pair meeting sooner rather than later. 

Froch is also billed as the WBA champion, a title he effectively shares with American star Andre Ward, who beat him in 2011 and has the official title of the organisation’s ‘super’ champion.

That defeat is one of only two suffered by Froch in his 33-fight career, during which he has been world champion three times.

The step up to world level will come in Groves’ 20th professional fight and the Londoner insists he is ready for the challenge.

Groves said: “If you look at good world champions – current, present and previous – they usually step up around the 20-fight mark and at around the age of 25.

“We know what we have to do. I’ve been written off and been the underdog before and I relish it.

“It’s the perfect fight for me. There will be a massive British audience and it’s against an established British world champion.”

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