• Light-heavyweight

Cleverly anger over Froch snub

Nathan Cleverly is preparing for his clash with Tommy Karpency © Getty Images

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WBO light-heavyweight champion Nathan Cleverly has revealed his disappointment that Carl Froch has decided not to move up a weight to fight the Welshman, declaring the snub as 'arrogant'.

Britain's only current world champion Cleverly returns to home soil when he takes on Tommy Karpency at Cardiff's Motorpoint Arena on February 25, but the unbeaten 24-year-old recently spoke of his ambition to fight Froch in a summer showdown at Cardiff City stadium.

Those plans appear to have been scuppered, however, with former super-middleweight champion Froch in negotiations for a two-fight deal - one in Montreal and one in England - with IBF king Lucian Bute.

Froch, who lost his WBC strap to American Andre Ward last month, wants to continue at 168 pounds, leaving a disillusioned Cleverly to hit out at his fellow Brit.

When asked whether Froch's snub smacked of arrogance, he told Sky Sports: "Yeah possibly. I just think it [the fight with Cleverly] makes sense and it would be a great fight. I know he'd have to move up a weight but it's an opportunity for him to become a two-weight world champion and if it's going to be an easy fight for him then why not do it."

Although boasting an unblemished record, Cleverly is struggling to get the exposure needed to put himself in the frame for super-fights. Compatriot Joe Calzaghe, the former two-weight world champion, struggled for years to get the publicity he eventually received and Cleverly believes Welsh fighters have a harder time getting noticed than their English counterparts.

He said: "It does take longer, there's no doubt about that. I've got to do it the hard way, like Joe did; it took him years, but eventually the truth always prevails."

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