Carl Froch Vacates IBF Title, James DeGale to Fight for Vacant Belt

Carl Froch has vacated his IBF super middleweight title, leaving James DeGale free to fight for the vacant belt.

The "chance" of Froch being able to face Bernard Hopkins at Nottingham Forest's City Ground and then Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in Vegas is reportedly behind the decision, per Jeff Powell of the Daily Mail. Froch indicated he didn't want to keep DeGale waiting for his chance to earn some gold, as tweeted by Sky Sports:

DeGale will get his shot soon, per Sky Sports:

The 29-year-old insisted he doesn't care who is put in front of him, per Sky Sports:

Froch's decision to relinquish his IBF title will allow negotiations to progress on what could potentially be two WBA World Championship battles. The Cobra has long suggested he wishes to conclude his career with a Vegas bout and isn't willing to face further English rivals after beating George Groves in two mandatory wins.

"I'm not going to be rail-roaded into doing the same against DeGale, who would need at least another fight or two against quality opposition before being ready for me," said Froch prior to his announcement, per Powell.

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Such an attitude could pave the way for Froch to take on Hopkins, who recently lost to Sergey Kovalev in Atlantic City. The Englishman's comments also suggest a Chavez deal isn't far from being concluded.

DeGale and Andre Dirrell are the mandatory challengers for Froch's belt, but Dirrell is "reluctant" to return to England after feeling unfairly beaten when he faced Froch, per Powell. With Groves reportedly hunting Anthony Dirrell, Andre's brother, DeGale may struggle to immediately find an opponent, per Nick Parkinson of ESPN.com.

Froch's willingness to give up the IBF belt suggests he is looking for something bigger and better during the latter stages of his career. This is fair enough—he has fought avidly to receive international recognition—as he enters a potential two-bout spell which could define how the sport remembers him.