Photo by Scott Heavey/Getty Images Sport
Saturday, September 20, 2014 marked the return of the confident Super Middleweight George Groves.
After coming off a sobering defeat at the hands of old nemesis Carl Froch, Groves was looking to propel himself back into world title contention with a win against European Super Middleweight Champion, Christopher Rebrasse.
In a fight for redemption, many were questioning whether Groves was in anyway damaged by his barnstormers against Froch. However, the slick Londoner proved that “The Cobra” is far from his thoughts, winning a lopsided unanimous decision against the tough Frenchman Rebrasse in a harder fight than the score cards suggested.
When the opening bell sounded, the size difference was immediately apparent as Rebrasse stood tall over the smaller Groves. Despite this, the 26 year old Groves controlled the action using his solid jab, then opening up late on as the man known as “L’iceberg” looked to have frozen stiff.
Round 2 saw more of the same from ‘The Saint’, but the Frenchman displayed a few signs of improvement, showing why he is the champion of Europe.
Nevertheless, any confidence Rebrasse gained in that round was soon retracted, when Groves began to land those thunderous right hands that built him a fierce reputation in the UK.
The 28 year old’s very limited head movement allowed Groves to seemingly land at will for the next three minutes.
It was the battle of the jabs in the fifth and sixth, with Groves slowing his attack somewhat. Even after some sharp counters from Rebrasse, Groves still controlled the pace, adding another round to the bank.
The pair went toe-to-toe for the next six minutes, although Groves won both rounds, for the first time in the fight it seemed the champion was looking the stronger of the two.
Was Groves in danger of being stopped again?
However in the round that followed, the 26 year old from Hammersmith showed his class using his reliable strong left jab. But, at the closing stages, Rebrasse landed a hard blow and Groves sagged into the ropes, showing that he cannot become complacent at any stage.
Hard combinations from The Saint did not seem to faze the Frenchman in the next two sessions, confirming that with all of Groves’ power, Rebrasse would not be handing his title over without a fight.
There was no doubt that with the final bell looming, the reigning champion needed a knockout. Some great footwork though meant that Groves was able to elude the Frenchman’s knockout punch to win on the scorecards.
The official scores read 118-110 twice and the other 117-111.
After throwing almost 1,000 punches, it was evident Groves was itching for the knockout victory in his comeback bout.
“This is show business, it’s a sport, we are here to entertain. I want to knock people out. I didn’t manage to do it tonight but I gave it a real good go,” Groves told Sky Sports.
With the might of a powerhouse promoter in the Sauerlands, Groves believes the world is his oyster as he focuses on that iconic world title.
“This is why I signed with these two men beside me (Sauerland Brothers) with their backing and our vision, we have the opportunity to take boxing to the next level. This is us limping in, its going to get a whole lot better.”
Tonight’s fight was also a WBC final eliminator, so Groves will now set his sights on American WBC Super Middleweight champion Anthony Dirrell.
With both men already igniting a feud, after recently firing insults in each others direction.
“We want him as soon as possible. He has done some statements, he’s a bit cheeky, a little outspoken and very disrespectful toward Rebrasse. I knockout a lot of guys and Rebrasse took a lot on the chin tonight. Dirrell, I don’t think he will stand up to that.”
Anthony Dirrell has a voluntary defense to negotiate before these two can settle their differences, therefore another opponent in the mix is WBO champion Arthur Abraham who is scheduled to take on Paul Smith next Saturday.
As Abraham is also within the Sauerland stable, a win next Saturday could set up an intriguing bout between the two.
The future now looks extremely bright for George Groves again, with Froch a mere distant memory as The Saint goes marching on.
In which direction? We aren’t quite not sure, but inevitably towards a world title.
Header photo by Scott Heavey/Getty Images
