1) Carl Froch defeated George Groves in their rematch at Wembley Stadium in front of 80,000 fans. Froch knocked out Groves in the 9th round to settle their rivalry. 2) Eddie Hearn reviews that it was the biggest and best boxing event in British history, with several title fights and wins on the undercard also. 3) Froch reflects on the victory and knockout, saying it was the best moment of his career to close the show against Groves in such a conclusive fashion after over a year of antagonism between them.

1. The fighters enter
the arena!
Froch lines
Groves up…
…and offers
encouragement!
58 www.TWITTER.com/ZOO 59www.TWITTER.com/ZOO
C
ongratulations
onagreat
victory,Carl.
Howdoeslifefeel
withoutGeorge
Grovesinit?
I’vegotthebiggestsmile
onmyface!I’vehadtoendure
someseriousabuse,silly
gamesandunnecessary
antagonisingoverthepast
year,butwelive130miles
apartandnowIdon’thave
totalktoorseehimanymore.
WasSaturdaynight
thegreatestnightof
yourcareer?
Itwasphenomenal,butitdidn’t
sinkinonthenightbecause
“Iclosedtheshowinbrutalfashion!” Eddie, have you ever been
involved in a greater
night of boxing?
It’s difficult to really enjoy it
when you’re working, but the
response I’ve had since the
show tells me how good it was.
People have told me that it was
the best sporting event they’d
ever been to; not just boxing,
but best sporting event!
What was the view like
from the best seat in
the house?
Ha! The one time I got to look
around and go “f**king hell”
was during the ring walks.
They were brilliant and a
reflection of the fighters’
mentalities. George was
soaking up the moment, as
you would at 26 in the biggest
fight in British boxing history.
Carl was just pure business, as
he was a man on a mission.
It looked like you had to
get Groves out of his
dressing room to get it
all started…
Groves has got that Hayemaker
team in his blood, so it’s not
unusual for them to keep you
waiting. But we had 80,000
screaming fans, and Sky Sports
had an 11pm curfew to keep.
That’s why I steamed over to
his security to get him out.
Could you have written
a better script?
It was a brilliant night all round.
Kevin Mitchell looked like he
was out of it and somehow
forced a stoppage, James
DeGale was sensational, Jamie
McDonnell won the world title
and Anthony Joshua was
Anthony Joshua!
From the look of you the
morning after, it must
have been a good party?
We got back to the hotel at 1am
and I didn’t turn in until 5am.
I woke up to calls from Sky
Sports asking to do a piece and
I rarely turn down interviews,
so I ran down straight away. It
was only when I saw it back
I realised how bad I looked.
Can British boxing hold
more nights like that?
I believe so. I’m not saying
every event is going to be like
that, but it shows the potential
if you’ve got the right product.
We did a great job promoting it,
so did the fighters. Few sports
can attract that audience. We’re
in a great place.
“Forgetboxing.That’sthe
bestsportingeventever!”
Iwassofocusedongetting
thejobdone.Afterwatching
itback,Ithinksatisfyingis
thewordI’duse.Ididthejob
thatIwantedtodoandput
thewholesagabehindme.
Ijustfeelliketheweightof
theworldhasbeenlifted
frommyshoulders.
Youcalledthe
knockoutpunchthe
bestofyourcareer…
Ilinedhimupperfectlyand
Ithinkhesethimselfupfor
itbytalkingaboutknocking
meoutwithalefthook.With
mycareerandlegacyonthe
line,Iclosedtheshowin
brutalandconclusivefashion
–andthat’swhatmakesit
thebest.
Canyouevenbegin
todescribethe
atmosphereinside
thestadium?
Ihadtoblockitout.Ido
remembertherewasalotof
unnecessarybooingforboth
fighters.ButIlefttocheers.
Whatdidyousayto
Georgeafterthefight?
Iwasverycomplimentary.
Itoldhimtokeephischinup.
Isthatabittonguein
cheek,carl?
It’sprobablynotthebest
advicebecauseyouhaveto
keepyourchindown!ButItold
himtostandproudanddon’t
letthisdefeatfinishhim
becausehe’sayoungmanand
hecanpotentiallycomeagain.
Itdependshowheresponds.
Doyouthinkhecan
comeback?
Georgeis
youngand
aquality
fighter.
He
can
comebackstrongerandwin
aworldtitle,butthat’sall
downtohimandhis
character.Heplayedhis
partinthefightand
betweenus,wecreated
whathappenedatWembley
Stadium.Forthat,weshould
bothbeproud.
What’snextforthe
Cobra?
I’mgoingtohaveagreat
holidayandthenthinkabout
myoptions.I’mnotgoingto
rushintoanything,and
Idon’tthinkanything
willtopWembley.Butwith
everythingIhaveachieved
inboxing,Iwouldstillliketo
fightinLasVegas,thefight
capitaloftheworld.
Soyournextopponent
ismorelikelytobe
JulioCesarChavezJr
thanJamesDeGale?
ChavezJrisabignamein
AmericaandhasabigMexican
following.Afightlikethatin
Vegaswiththeworldwatching
issomethingthatexcitesme.
I’vefoughttwomandatoriesin
arow,sonowIcanfightwho
Iwant.JamesDeGalegot
agreatwinagainstalimited
opponentandGeorgeGroves
beathim.He’sgottoearnhis
stripesbeforehecanbecome
aseriouschallenger.
Eddie Hearn reviews the aftermath of the mega match-up
After two fights, months of verbals and 17 rounds of toe-to-toe action, Carl Froch has the final word
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Froch vs Groves 2
Epilogue