Carl Froch Stuns Lucian Bute in Spectacular KO Win

Many wondered how Lucian Bute would do in his first fight outside of his home countries of Canada and Romania against the most elite fighter he has faced in Carl Froch.

It didn't take long to pan out: Bute was dominated throughout the fight, which was stopped in Round 5 after Froch knocked Bute out on his feet.

Bute (31-1, 24 KOs) never really got any solid offense going at all in the fight, as Froch (29-2, 21 KOs) destroyed the previously unbeaten Bute, much to the delight of Froch's hometown crowd in Nottingham, England.

Froch walks away with the IBF super middleweight title and a newfound confidence after suffering just the second loss of his career to Andre Ward in Showtime's Super Six tournament final last December.

Seemingly fighting on a whole different level than Bute, Froch looked determined to become a champion for the third time in his career.

Bute does have a rematch clause which calls for the next fight to take place in his home country of Canada, but Froch will most likely call the shots as to who his next opponent will be.

With the spectacular win, Bute now becomes the second-most attractive fighter in the 168-pound division—behind Andre Ward—and will have the picking of who gets the first shot at his new crown.

Ward is a possibility, as the two could meet in a rematch of the Super Six final, giving Froch a chance to redeem his loss and Ward a chance to add the IBF title to his three-belt collection.

Mikkel Kessler is another option, as Froch could opt to try to beat the only person other than Ward ever to beat him.

Whatever Froch does, he has now put himself back in the spotlight and will be a big draw going forward after he put on a great display of boxing skill and power in upsetting the favored Bute.