Carl Froch had a successful career as a professional boxer.
The Nottingham fighter held numerous versions of the world super middleweight titles during his 12 years inside the ring and played a part in a memorable rivalry against George Groves.
Now with rumours surrounding a potential fight between Conor Benn and Gervonta Davis gathering pace, Froch sent a warning to Benn to not overlook the threat posed by Davis despite the American operating two weight divisions below Benn.
This warning from Froch stemmed from personal experience where he recalled a difficult sparring session with two former British champions at lower weight classes.
“When I started sparring at the Lennox Lewis College in Clapton, I jumped in with a guy called Wayne Alexander, who won at the ABA’s and was British champion. I was still learning my craft and he was too much for me, I’ll be honest," Froch told talkSPORT.
“He was the light-middleweight British champion with heavy hands, pushing me around the ring and hitting me with shots, and I’m thinking ‘bloody hell, is that what it is like?’
“Then you spar for two or three months, you get used to it and you see him in the gym, you accustom yourself to that. Then it was Howard Eastman, ‘The Battersea Bomber’, who fought William Joppy and Bernard Hopkins but fell short.
“He chucked the William Joppy fight away did Howard Eastman, but I started sparring with him and I’m thinking ‘bloody hell, welcome to the pros, big right-hand on my chin,’. I wasn’t wobbled but I felt the shots and then you get used to it.”
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