Size does count. In boxing as well as many aspects of life, and George Groves made it matter all over again to set up a potential London football stadium mega-fight against Chris Eubank Jnr in the New Year.
Groves followed Eubank’s three-round demolition of a Turkish hard-nut a week earlier by demolishing fellow Brit Jamie Cox inside four at Wembley Arena.
The gauntlets flung down in these World Series tournament quarter-finals will be picked up with a vengeance on January 20.
Groves took his chances well when he moved forward and ambushed Cox who seemed unprepared to take his punches
Cox moving backwards was a sign for Groves to step in and hurry his opponent who was clearly struggling
Cox was put on the back foot a number of times by the champion and did find it tough to rock his opponent
Groves v Eubank has been coming for years and it will arrive in the semi-finals with all gloves blazing.
Saint George heads for that collision firmly believing that his physical stature as full-blown super-middleweight world champion will prove decisive agains.
After disembowelling the fast, furious but reckless Cox with a sickening right-hander to the pit of the stomach, he greeted Eubank into the ring with this warning:
‘Jamie is a world-class light-middleweight but he was too small to take me. So is Chris.’
Eubank, like Cox, has come up a division for this tournament.
Groves, like Eubank seven nights before in Stuttgart, produced the concussive performance which smothered all appetite for a fight among the rival entities in the crowd.
Cox, like Avni Yildirim in front of his fellow Turks, made the cavalry charges only to be picked off by wickedly accurate counter punches.
Like Eubank, Groves won every round in the course of delivering the coup de grace.
Game, set and the big match to come.
Groves walks out at the Wembley Arena ahead of his title defence against Cox on Saturday evening
The two old England amateur team room=mates had maintained respectful courtesies – laced with only the occasional barb – through the preamble.
Groves had referred to the lesser-known Cox’s professional career as being ‘stagnant’ before he was granted this title shot out of the blue.
Cox had inferred that Groves was more a thinking man’s fighter than ring savvy, saying: ‘He’s read a book but he’s not street-wise. I don’t read books. I get ready to knock people out.’
Both have a goodly KO ratio on their records and those expecting this to go the distance were in the minority.
The anticipation of an explosive fight helped boost the attendance seemingly a tad above the expected 7,000, including a majority of London support for local boy Groves.
The light show which accompanied their ring walks was spectacular but the atmosphere was spared the brawling hostility of Stuttgart a week earlier when Eubank silenced a hall festering with rival immigrant gangs with his knock-out quarter final performance.
At the first bell a brass band struck up with a rendition of When The Saints Go Marching In, And in Groves duly marched, rocking Cox with huge right and unleashing combinations which won the first round, even though his challenger fought back furiously at the end. It was a crowd-rousing opener.
Cox, desperate for the early knock-out, began he second with a frenzied assault, whaling away at Groves on the ropes. But when the cleaner, more damaging punches came it was Groves who staggered him with lefts and rights. Referee Gray had to warn them to watch their heads.
Cox was still all action as it went on, Groves landing the more cleanly.
There were fights breaking out in the Arena but the one in the ring was about to come to a sudden end.
It was a classic finish by Groves. Another lunge by Cox was cleverly blocked by the champion, who then planted vicious body shot deep into the stomach.
A right hook helped Cox’s journey to the canvass but he was already as winded as punctured balloon as he fell and never looked remotely like beating the count.