Carl Froch retires: His five greatest fights

The Nottingham fighter has hung up his gloves

Carl Froch celebrates his win over George Groves at Wembley (PA WIRE)

1. Lucian Bute (TKO 5, May 2012, Nottingham Arena)

All or nothing. Having lost convincingly to Andre Ward in his previous fight, Froch’s career was on the line against the supposedly unbeatable IBF super-middleweight champion Lucian Bute. How did Froch respond? He blasted Bute away inside five rounds, sparking joyous scenes at the Nottingham Arena.

Carl Froch destroys Lucian Bute

2. George Groves (TKO 8, May 2014, Wembley Stadium)

How could we overlook the biggest fight post-war Britain has seen? 80,000 people (as Froch likes to remind people – including Floyd Mayweather) witnessed Froch throw the sweetest punch of his career to knock out Groves in their rematch. What a way to end the grudge, and what a final punch to throw of a glorious career.

3. Jermain Taylor (TKO 12, April 2009, Foxwoods Resort, Connecticut, USA)

Down on two of the scorecards and recovering from a third-round knockdown, Froch knew he needed a knock-out to defeat Taylor to retain his WBC super-middleweight title. Showing his mettle, and somehow finding a way to win, with just 14 seconds of the fight remaining Froch devastated his American opponent with a barrage of shots and the fight was called off in dramatic fashion.

Jermain Taylor is knocked down by Carl Froch in the 12th round (GETTY IMAGES)

4. Mikkel Kessler (UD, May 2013, o2 Arena, London)

Froch avenged the first defeat of his career in a gruelling contest at the o2. This time, Froch worked behind his jab, and outboxed his Danish opponent, who has become a good friend of his outside the ring. A unanimous points win showed Froch’s dominance.

Carl Froch after his victory over Mikkel Kessler (AP)

5. Arthur Abraham (UD, Hartwell Arena, Finland)

As part of the hugely entertaining Super Six series, ‘King’ Arthur Abraham was billed as a fearsome puncher that would trouble Froch. Instead, Froch won the WBC super-middleweight title for the second time by putting on a boxing masterclass, winning every round.