A Super Six Champion Crowned: Ward Conquers Froch [VIDEO]

ATLANTIC CITY, NJ — Two scorecards of 115-113 did not reflect the dominance of Andre Ward (25-0, 13 KOs), who consistently beat Carl Froch (28-2, 20 KOs) to the punch and controlled the inside battle to win Showtime’s Super Six Boxing Classic on Saturday (December 17).

The early tactical rounds favored Ward, who countered Froch’s attempts to rush in with sharp left hooks. On the outside, Ward’s faster hands and accuracy allowed him to land hard left jabs to the center of Froch’s face, causing visible damage to Froch’s nose that progressed through the night. Froch’s attempt to make it a rougher fight in the fourth equally did him no favors as Ward unleashed rights crosses and left hooks to nullify the challenger’s body shots.

Froch turned up his workrate in the fifth and found success with hooks to the body. Ward’s money punch remained the left hook, but the Oakland native also potshotted Froch with lead right hands. However, Froch’s activity and aggression to the body gave him his first clear round.

The remaining middle rounds would turn into a mauling, inside battle favorable to Ward. The seventh round had Ward bullying Froch to the ropes and ripping short hooks. When there was any space, Ward’s lead left hook and right hands had Froch looking visibly discouraged. By the ninth, Froch was complaining to the ref about Ward’s inside rough-housing.

Froch would do much better in the championship rounds where Ward finally showed signs of fatigue. Although clearly losing the 10th, Froch was able to unleash clusters of telling body shots in the 11th. Ward went to his southpaw stance but stayed in retreat for the most of the round. Froch did even better in the 12th with a right hook and overhand right. Ward could be seen looking at the clock and holding whenever Froch pressed his attack.

The visible bruising on both men reflected the rough nature of the bout. Although seemingly a lopsided Ward win, two judges scored it close at 115-113. The final judge saw a dominant Ward victory by the score of 118-108.

“I was surprised at how slow Froch was,” said Ward, who went undefeated in his five Super Six bouts. “We were just able to beat him to the punch… You don’t get points for leaving your chin open… To pull this off is unbelievable.”

Froch, who went into the bout immensely confident that he had the power to KO Ward, gave an honest assessment of his shortcomings.

“I couldn’t get anything going,” Froch admitted. “He’s very slippery and tricky in close, very clever. I needed to take a step back and relax. He’s very good at keeping himself out of harm’s way.”

The win concludes Showtime’s two-year, round robin Super Six tournament that featured two fighter pullouts/replacements and several upsets. Ward’s next potential opponent is a unification showdown with Canadian IBF titlist Lucian Bute.