ESPN Boxing

CASTLE DONINGTON, England -- Going into his challenge of super middleweight titlist Lucian Bute, former two-time titlist Carl Froch certainly doesn't lack for confidence -- even though he is coming off a clear decision loss to Andre Ward in a title unification fight in December in the final of the Super Six World Boxing Classic.

"The Ward loss was very frustrating," Froch said. "I knew it was going to be a hard night's work. I knew it was tricky. I knew he was a spoiler. I know what he does. What he does, he does well. He's fast and he was catching me with left hooks.

"I know where I went wrong. But again, it wasn't a loss where I go back to the drawing board and say I don't belong at this level, I'm not good enough [or] I'm not a very good fighter, it's time to retire. It wasn't one of those losses. ... I could've won the fight. I mean, would've, should've and could've -- and I got beat fair and square by the better guy on the night. But what I'm saying is, it wasn't meant for me and, you know, it didn't kill my confidence. It really didn't. I look to Ward as the great fighter he is, and I came as close as anyone else has come to beating him."

Despite the loss, Froch is right back in a world title bout -- and in his hometown of Nottingham -- against Bute on Saturday night (6 ET, Epix and EpixHD.com) at the Capital FM Arena.

"I'm jumping straight in with a world champion," Froch said. "I don't think Bute is as good as Ward, and I'm not sure if he's as good as [Mikkel] Kessler or Andre Dirrell or Jermain Taylor. I really don't, because he's only fought Brian Magee and Glen Johnson.

"So, mentally, I'm confident. I'm switched on. I'm ready. And I'm not licking my wounds. I'm not sulking. I'm not feeling sorry for myself because I lost my last fight. I'm really not. I'm taking confidence from that loss. I know where I went wrong and I know what I need to do to put it right. And I can beat Lucian Bute. I'm going to be a three-time world champion. That's the kind of stuff legends are made of."

Froch is expecting his rowdy fans to turn out for Friday's public weigh-in -- which will air live on Sky Sports News -- as they did before his most recent fight in Nottingham, a split-decision win against Dirrell in 2009 in the first stage of the Super Six.

"Bute is going to feel the full force of my fans [Friday] -- there's nothing like 'The Cobra's Army' in full force," Froch said. "It looks like it's going to be a beautiful day, so I hope they come out in thousands.

"When I weighed in for the Dirrell fight, they definitely gave me an edge. He was intimidated by the huge numbers, and then they started chanting for me. They created a real racket [then], and they will [again Friday], and Lucian will get a little idea of what's in store for him on Saturday night -- but times by three."

Bute will at least have fans at the fight. Some are already here, and the early estimate is that more than 1,000 will make the trek from his adopted home country of Canada, as well as from his native Romania, to cheer him on.

Dan Rafael has written extensively about the June 2 Showtime quadrupleheader headlined by Antonio Tarver and Lateef Kayode, which appears rock-solid from top to bottom. Yet of the four televised fights, he's most intrigued by the Austin Trout-Delvin Rodriguez junior middleweight title tilt -- and not only because he believes it may be the most crowd-pleasing fight on the card. For more on Rafael's thoughts on Trout-Rodriguez, click on the video above.

No matter what happens when super middleweight titlist Lucian Bute faces former two-time titleholder Carl Froch, he won't use a recent foot infection as an excuse, according to trainer Stephan Larouche.

Bute (30-0, 24 KOs), the Montreal star, will defend his title -- his 10th defense -- at the Capital FM Arena in Nottingham, England, where Super Six World Boxing Classic runner-up Froch (28-2, 20 KOs) is from, on Saturday night (6 p.m. ET, Epix and EpixHD.com).

Earlier this month, Bute was nursing an infection in his right foot and was on antibiotics during the height of his training camp. Larouche said the issue arose after Bute tried a new shoe about a month ago.

"Lucian had two blisters," Larouche said. "Lucian kept telling me, 'I'm having a little bit more pain in this one,' and I kept telling him, 'Well, it's not the end of the world,' until one day, he had some blood coming out of it, and the blood was not nice colors.

"So we lead him to the doctors. The doctors said had he not come to see [them], you're going to lose your [big] toe. It's a major infection and the infection was up to the ankle."

At that point, Bute went on the antibiotics for about 10 days.

"Everything has disappeared," Larouche said. "He has no more infection. We cannot even see it no more, so he's bouncing as he used to. Perfect feet right now."

Larouche said if there was any issue with the infection, Bute would have withdrawn from the fight.

Then Larouche took a shot at former heavyweight titlist David Haye of England, who used a sore little toe as an excuse for his lopsided points loss against champion Wladimir Klitschko last summer.

"It's not going to be a toe story," Larouche said.

Imagine demanding that your city add a stop sign on your corner and then, after local officials relent, blowing through the intersection at your first opportunity. A weak analogy, perhaps, but you get the idea why ESPN.com's Dan Rafael is so confounded by Lamont Peterson and Andre Berto, who sought random drug testing ahead of their recent scheduled bouts and then proceeded to get popped for banned substances. For more on Rafael's thoughts on performance enhancers and drug testing in boxing, check out the clip above.

Montreal star and super middleweight titlist Lucian Bute has business to attend to when he defends his belt against former two-time titleholder Carl Froch in Froch's hometown of Nottingham, England on Saturday night (Epix and EpixHD.com, 6 ET), but that doesn't mean Bute doesn't pay attention to what else is going on in boxing -- especially when he has more than a passing interest in the outcome.

Bute had hoped to face Super Six World Boxing Classic winner Andre Ward on Saturday, but he wound up making a deal with tournament runner-up Froch when, for various reasons, the fight with Ward never emerged as a serious possibility.

Ward, who was dealing with a hand injury and now is awaiting the June birth of his child, won't be back until Sept. 8 and is in the process of finalizing a fight against light heavyweight champion Chad Dawson. The fight likely will be for Ward's super middleweight championship.

Bute will be paying attention because the winner could loom for him. Whomever wins, Bute against Ward or Dawson would be a pretty big fight.

So how does Bute think Ward-Dawson will go?

"I think that it just creates more popularity for the two guys, especially for Andre Ward, if it's a close fight," Bute said. "It's going to be a technical fight, [a strategic] fight, and I think that it doesn't interfere right now with what I am doing. And I think, at the end of the day, when you keep winning, everybody wants to see the winner at the end of the day, and the best fight the best."

But who does Bute think will win the fight?

"I think it's very, very close -- about 50-50,” Bute said. "But I would give a little edge to Dawson right now."

At its regular meeting on Monday, the Nevada State Athletic Commission appointed officials for the Top Rank-promoted Manny Pacquiao-Timothy Bradley Jr. card, which takes place June 9 (HBO PPV) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas:

Pacquiao-Bradley (welterweight title bout): referee Robert Byrd and judges Duane Ford, C.J. Ross and Jerry Roth.

Jorge Arce-Jesus Rojas (junior featherweight bout): referee Kenny Bayless and judges Adalaide Byrd, Dick Houck and Patricia Morse Jarman.

Mike Jones-Randall Bailey (vacant welterweight title bout): referee Tony Weeks and judges Dave Moretti, Ricardo Ocasio and Jack Ries.

Guillermo Rigondeaux-Teon Kennedy (junior featherweight title bout): referee Russell Mora and judges Lisa Giampa, Glenn Trowbridge and Pat Russell.

It has become one of boxing's great traditions: Manny Pacquiao going on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" before he fights.

Pacquiao will be back on Kimmel's couch in Hollywood, Calif., on Thursday night (ABC, 12:05 a.m. ET/PT) in advance of his welterweight title defense against Timothy Bradley Jr. (28-0, 12 KOs) on June 9 (HBO PPV) at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Kimmel, who has called himself a "lucky rabbit's foot" for Pacquiao, has had the Filipino congressman on before each of his fights for the past three years. Thursday's appearance will be Pacquiao's sixth consecutive prefight appearance on Kimmel dating back to November 2009, beginning with his welterweight title victory against Miguel Cotto.

That first appearance was the most memorable, as it was when Pacquiao crooned his rendition of the Dan Hill ballad "Sometimes When We Touch," which he and Hill later remade. Pacquiao has also sung with Kimmel ("How Deep is Your Love") and actor Will Ferrell ("Imagine") in other highly entertaining appearances.

No word on whether Pacquiao (54-3-2, 38 KOs) will sing on Thursday night's episode, which will also feature actress Charlize Theron and a musical performance by Graffiti 6.

For months, Top Rank talked about putting on a July 14 pay-per-view card at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, but now it looks like the talk is over and there won't be a show.

Originally, Top Rank's Bob Arum said the card would be headlined by Mexican star Juan Manuel Marquez, who won an interim junior welterweight belt in April, and that junior featherweight titlist Nonito Donaire would fight in the co-feature.

Then Arum said Donaire wouldn't be on the card because the company would give him his own date (probably June 30 on HBO). Even without Donaire, Marquez would still headline, Arum said. But no deal had been finalized with a television company to distribute the event and Marquez had no opponent.

Top Rank was talking to HBO about working on the show, and Top Rank certainly could have done it on its own, but time is running short to mount a legitimate pay-per-view promotion.

Then came the usual steady stream of discussion about whom Marquez would fight. Junior welterweight titlist Lamont Peterson was originally mentioned, but he instead accepted a rematch with Amir Khan (which was supposed to have taken place last Saturday but was canceled when Peterson tested positive for a synthetic testosterone).

Other names were mentioned for Marquez: fellow Mexican star and future Hall of Famer Erik Morales (a fight I've wanted to see for about a decade), former titlist Zab Judah, former lightweight titlist Brandon Rios (coming off a gift decision against Richard Abril that most sane people thought was a very obvious Abril victory) and the utterly unknown Mercito Gesta, a talented Filipino lightweight who is, alas, nowhere near ready to face a fighter of Marquez's caliber.

In the end, after all the talk, Top Rank pulled the plug on the event Monday because Marquez elected not to fight on the pay-per-view. From what I hear from those around Marquez, the financial package wasn't to Marquez's liking. Plus, he didn't want to fight Rios, the opponent Top Rank wanted him to face.

Marquez had previously said he preferred a southpaw opponent (Judah and Gesta would have fit) in anticipation of a possible fourth fight with Manny Pacquiao, a left-hander, in the fall.

Now Marquez might instead wait to see what happens in the June 9 Pacquiao-Timothy Bradley Jr. fight. If Pacquiao wins, Marquez figures to be at the top of the list for Pacquiao's November opponent.

Arum had been in talks with Main Events' Kathy Duva about a Marquez-Judah fight, but according to Duva, Arum told her Monday that "Marquez has decided not to fight at all in July."

Zanfer Promotions, which has a promotional contract with Marquez but works closely with Top Rank, said it is possible Marquez could still fight this summer -- but in Mexico on July 21 or July 28, likely against a lesser opponent.

David Price's impressive fourth-round destruction of Sam Sexton on Saturday, in which he scored three knockdowns to win the vacant British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles, kept him on track toward his ultimate goal: to win a world title by his 20th fight.

"People might have dismissed David's comment when he said he could become world heavyweight champion by his 20th fight," said Frank Maloney, Price's promoter. "That doesn't look a bad prediction now. He could most probably earn his chance quickly, but it is about becoming world champion and having a long reign."

Maloney, of course, is very bullish on Price, 28, who won an Olympic bronze medal in 2008. Maloney said in the aftermath of the Sexton fight, which took place in Price's hometown of Liverpool, that he is exploring the possibility of a fight for Price (13-0, 11 KOs) in the United States this summer. However, I'd bet that Price will probably stay in England for his next fight to take advantage of the rave reviews he is getting for the performance against Sexton. But it would be nice to see the 6-foot-8, 245-pounder hit America's shores. Whatever Price does next, Maloney was impressed with his fighter's performance.

"We know David has an impeccable amateur pedigree, but to do a job like that on Sam in only his 13th professional fight was special," Maloney said. "The only other person to beat Sexton was Dereck Chisora [who has two TKOs against Sexton], and I will let [people] decide who was the most impressive against him."

Now Maloney plans to get together with Price and his team to consider the fighter's next opponent.

"There are some credible British opponents who would be decent opposition, and there has been interest from America for a while," Maloney said. "Whatever decision is made will be in David's best interests and nobody else."

Junior welterweight titlist Marcos Maidana is ready to put February's lopsided decision loss to Devon Alexander behind him.

Maidana moved up to welterweight for the fight, as did Alexander, and was toyed with. Now back at junior welterweight to defend his belt, Maidana (31-3, 28 KOs), the big puncher from Argentina, has been in Oxnard, Calif., working with new trainer Robert Garcia and looking forward to a return to action later this summer against an opponent to be determined.

"I've felt very good in my first week training with my new team," Maidana said through translator (and adviser) Sebastian Contursi. "There are great fighters and a great atmosphere around here. Obviously, it will take me some time to adjust and get [into] great physical condition, but we'll get there with hard work."

When Andre Berto failed a drug test and was bounced from his June 23 welterweight rematch with Victor Ortiz, Maidana's name was at the top of the list as a possible replacement, according to Golden Boy promoter Richard Schaefer. Maidana, after all, made Ortiz quit in the sixth round of a sensational, knockdown-filled junior welterweight brawl in June 2009.

Golden Boy and Showtime are keeping the show in place, but Berto has been replaced by Josesito Lopez. With Maidana only a week into his new training camp, he said he wouldn't have had enough time to get ready for the date.

"The news caught me by surprise, of course," Maidana said. "My advisor, Sebastian Contursi, let me know that Golden Boy Promotions asked him whether it was possible for me to be ready for June 23. But, of course, I cannot do it in only five weeks. It's a shame that the time frame does not fit, as I would've loved to face Ortiz again.

"I know this is the second postponement [of the Berto fight] for Victor, and I feel bad for him. Maybe if Golden Boy Promotions can secure a new date, then we could talk about the rematch, because I know people want it."

Former junior welterweight Amir Khan is also looking for a new opponent after the cancellation of his May 19 fight against titleholder Lamont Peterson, who also flunked a random urine test. Maidana pushed Khan to the limit in a December 2010 title bout before losing a decision in a fight that was voted fight of the year by the Boxing Writers Association of America.

Khan likely will fight a new opponent on his rescheduled date of July 7, and Maidana's name has been raised for that spot, too.

"That's another rematch that I'd love to take," Maidana said. "Everybody knows that I've been asking to face Amir again, for more than a year now. But again, time-wise it does not work, as apparently Khan needs to fight on July 7. In any case, if either Ortiz or Khan are willing to fight me, I'll be ready for any of them by the end of July. I know Amir Khan is looking for his former belts to be given back to him after the Peterson case. If he wants a belt, let's move his date two or three weeks and try to get it from me in the ring."

Many suggested that because Khan and Ortiz were both looking for new opponents that they ought to have faced each other. Great fight, but it wasn't going to happen, at least not in their next bouts. Ortiz is locked into Showtime for the June 23 date. Khan, who has said quite clearly that he is planning for his next fight to be at junior welterweight before moving up in weight, is under contract to HBO. That rendered the possibility of an Ortiz-Khan fight this summer impossible.

Besides, even if they were free, it would make absolutely zero business sense for Golden Boy. Each date is worth seven figures, so why in the world would Golden Boy give up one of them?

Even if it isn't the fight many of us had hoped to see at 168 pounds -- that would be Andre Ward taking on fellow titlist Lucian Bute -- ESPN.com's Dan Rafael says the May 26 super middleweight tilt between Bute and Carl Froch is likely the next-best thing, and that ain't bad. In fact, Rafael believes Froch has a shot to pull the upset in his native Nottingham, England. For more on the fight, check out Rafael's preview in the clip above.

Ask super middleweight champ and undefeated pound-for-pound star Andre Ward who gave him his toughest fight. He'll tell you it was Sakio Bika.

Australia's Bika, who won "The Contender" reality series tournament in 2007, is as rugged as they come. Even though he lost a lopsided decision in a world title fight against Ward in November 2010, Bika was very physical and came to fight, as always.

Bika, however, has been chronically inactive and has had just one fight since facing Ward -- a third-round knockout of sub-.500 Alfredo Contreras in a December walkover.

But Bika (29-5-2, 20 KOs), 33, is coming back in an interesting fight against Dyah Davis (21-2-1, 9 KOs), 30, of Coconut Creek, Fla., on June 2. Davis is the son of 1976 U.S. Olympian Howard Davis Jr. and is experienced.

The fight will take place at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., on the undercard of a Showtime quadrupleheader headlined by former light heavyweight champ Antonio Tarver against Lateef Kayode in a cruiserweight bout. The rest of the card includes middleweight Winky Wright against "Kid Chocolate" Peter Quillin, junior middleweight titlist Austin Trout in a defense against Delvin Rodriguez, and Leo Santa Cruz and Vusi Malinga vying for a vacant bantamweight title.

That means Bika-Davis will be part of the Showtime Extreme coverage of preliminary bouts that precedes the Showtime broadcast.

Bika has been in St. Louis for nearly six weeks working with new trainer Kevin Cunningham to get ready for the fight.

"He's a pleasure to work with," Cunningham said of Bika on Thursday when we were catching up on the phone. "He works hard. He's strong. He's in tremendous shape. And he listens."

Cunningham said he is working with Bika specifically to tighten his defense "a little more, get him a little sharper. But he's so strong. He's ready to go. He'll be pressing Davis from the opening bell. He's prepared to go 10 rounds, a hard 10 rounds."

Cunningham trains and manages Devon Alexander, a former junior welterweight titlist and now a welterweight contender. Cunningham recently brought in Al Haymon as an adviser to help him work on Alexander's career. Haymon, also Bika's adviser, put Bika and Cunningham together.

"We just hit it off from the time I picked him up at the airport," Cunningham said of Bika. "Devon and Sakio hit it off really well in the gym also, because Devon has been in there doing some light work."

Matchroom Sport's "Prizefighter" series has become a popular attraction on Sky Sports in England. The concept is interesting: Take eight fighters and match them via blind draw in a one-night tournament of three-round fights. The winner gets the biggest purse of the night.

Since gambling is legal in England, the tournaments provide fun fodder for the wagering crowd, plus good action for fight fans. The 25th edition of the series will take place June 20 in London, but this one has more notable names than usual.

The latest edition will take place in the heavyweight division and include a trio of former world title challengers -- American Kevin Johnson, Albert Sosnowski of Poland (who is now based in England) and Australia's Kali Meehan -- all hoping to get their careers back on track with a notable victory. Also announced for the field was England's Tom Dallas (15-2, 11 KOs), who is trying to bounce back from back-to-back knockout losses to former title challenger Matt Skelton and rising British prospect David Price.

Johnson (26-1-1, 12 KOs) and Sosnowski (46-4-2, 28 KOs) have both challenged Vitali Klitschko for his version of the heavyweight championship. In December 2009, Johnson was outclassed as he spent most of the fight running and refusing to throw punches in a horrible performance that he has yet to live down. Sosnowski was game in his May 2010 challenge before being knocked out in the 10th round. Meehan (38-5, 31 KOs) lost a controversial split decision to Lamon Brewster in a 2004 world title fight.

Johnson, whose mouth has always been bigger than his punching, is already talking smack ahead of the tournament.

"I'm ready to put the American heavyweight boxing scene back on the map, starting with the Betfair 'Prizefighter' tournament on June 20," he said. "Like I tell everybody, I am the best American heavyweight, bar none. If people see me, they will know it. Don't worry about Seth Mitchell, Chris Arreola or any of those other clowns. Just focus on me and watch me deliver. I'm the best heavyweight in the world that's not named Klitschko, and after 'Prizefighter,' I'll take care of that, too."

The rest of the field has not yet been announced.

On March 31, unheralded lightweight Sergio Thompson of Mexico scored a big upset when he knocked out former two-division titlist Jorge Linares in the second round of a dominant performance. Thompson was supposed to be a tuneup opponent on Linares' way to a July 7 rematch with lightweight titlist Antonio DeMarco, who had rallied to stop Linares in the 11th round of an October fight he had been losing badly to claim a vacant belt.

In the process of ruining Linares' plans, Thompson (21-2, 19 KOs) launched himself into the top 10 of the lightweight rankings. He will be back in action on May 26 in Cancun in his first fight since the knockout of Linares. Thompson will face Juan Roman Solis (16-5-1, 5 KOs) of Argentina in a scheduled 10-rounder that will be televised in the United States on Fox Deportes.

In the main event, Mexico's Pablo Cesar Cano (23-1-1, 18 KOs) will face Fidel Monterrosa (29-5, 23 KOs) of Colombia in a 10-round lightweight fight. The fight will be Cano's second since he gave Erik Morales a spirited challenge in a 10th-round knockout loss when they fought for a vacant junior welterweight belt in September on the Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Victor Ortiz undercard. Monterrosa lost a decision to Humberto Soto in a 2010 lightweight title bout.

Heavyweight prospect Deontay Wilder (21-0, 21 KOs), who claimed a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics (the only boxing medal for the United States that year) is also on the card. He's scheduled to face Chad Van Sickle (23-9-3, 12 KOs) in an eight-rounder. Lightweight prospect Jamie Kavanagh (9-0-1, 4 KOs) also is on the card, in a six-rounder against an opponent to be determined, while flyweight contender Wilbert Uicab (33-7-1, 18 KOs) of Mexico will fight in a 10-rounder.

Top Rank announced Tuesday that it has signed amateur standout Toka Kahn-Clary, a junior lightweight from Providence, R.I.

Kahn-Clary, 20, who is by trained Peter Manfredo Sr. and managed by Mike Criscio (who guided Chad Dawson to a light heavyweight title), will make his professional debut on June 8 at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas on the ESPN2/ESPN3 "Friday Night Fights" card headlined by former middleweight champ Kelly Pavlik against Scott Sigmon in a super middleweight bout.

"Everyone at Top Rank is excited, and what a great way for Toka to start, fighting on the Kelly Pavlik card at the Hard Rock," Top Rank promoter Bob Arum said in making the announcement.

"Toka is a top prospect who is the real deal," said Top Rank chief matchmaker Bruce Trampler. "He throws a lot of punches and hits hard."

Manfredo, father of former middleweight and super middleweight title challenger Peter Manfredo Jr., is high on his newest fighter.

"Toka is the best I've seen at our gym in 35 years -- and I've seen a lot of fighters," Manfredo said. "He has speed, skill, tremendous combinations and a big heart."

Kahn-Cary also has quite the story. Born in Liberia, he moved to Philadelphia when he was 6 -- the same year he was orphaned after his father was killed in a shooting. He eventually made his way to Pawtucket, R.I., where he was taken under the wings of Andrea Watson, her husband, Ron Clary, and Manfredo.

As an amateur, Toka was a 2010 National Golden Gloves champion, a 2011 silver medalist at the U.S. Championships and a bronze medalist at the 2012 U.S. National Championships.