Carl Froch claims his long-time British rival Joe Calzaghe got lucky on his way to retiring unbeaten.
Even years after their retirements, the rivalry between these two boxing icons remains one of the sport’s great ‘what if’ debates. Although they never met in the ring, both men had great success in the super middleweight division during their respective eras and, because of their enduring legacies, a match-up continues to spark debate amongst fans.
Calzaghe had blistering hand speed and a slick southpaw style that saw him retire undefeated after 46 contests. His last two wins over legends like Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones Jr after moving up to light heavyweight, cemented his all-time great status.
Froch, meanwhile, has long claimed that Calzaghe moved up to avoid facing him as he was a younger, more aggressive challenger with knockout power and a granite chin. The Nottingham man carved out an impressive career of his own on his way to winning multiple world titles, including the WBC belt twice and later the IBF and WBA straps.
Speaking to the Ring Magazine, Froch took issue with Calzaghe’s victory in his fight with Robin Reid over two decades ago.
“Robin Reid could really bang, and in my opinion he deserved the win over Joe in their fight.”
Elaborating on Sporting Talk more recently, Froch said he feels both Reid and Hopkins deserved the nod when they facd the Welshman.
“I thought Bernard Hopkins smashed him and didn’t get the decision and like I said earlier Robin Reid punched his skull in for 12 rounds and Calzaghe showed how tough he was and won a decision and never rematched him, but lets not rip the a**e out of Joe Calzaghe cause I’ve nothing against him, he’s a top fighter.”
The bout between Reid and Calzaghe was back in 1999 and was not without controversy. One card went to Reid, 116-111, while two cards of 116-111 went to the Welshman, which left Reid in disbelief after a fine performance.
In 2008, Calzaghe moved to light heavyweight and defeated Hopkins via split decision – a result the American felt was a robbery. Calzaghe would fight just once more, beating Roy Jones Jr later that year to retire undefeated.