Froch vs Kessler II: Carl Froch ready for battle on May 25

Carl Froch is itching to go on May 25, when he headlines at the O2 Arena in London against Mikkel Kessler, a rematch of their epic 2010 battle, and says he's had a great camp for the fight:

"I am getting that tingle in my hands and down my spine now, I know that feeling well and it means that I'm ready to fight. It is such a huge occasion for me but it is nights like this where I thrive and stand up to be counted. I feel like everything is clicking in training and sparring has been fantastic. I couldn't ask to be in a better place than I am right now."

Froch-Kessler II is the fight for which Sky Sports has brought back pay-per-view boxing, and it's a deserving bout. In the States, it will air live on HBO.

Froch (30-2, 22 KO) lost the 2010 fight in Denmark, but with home field in London, and after a demolition win last year over Lucian Bute, he's the favorite for this fight. At 35, he's actually slightly older than the 34-year-old Kessler, but Kessler (46-2, 35 KO) has taken more physical punishment in his career, and has had injury troubles in his recent past, including an eye injury that took him out of the Super Six World Boxing Classic, in which Froch finished as runner-up to division kingpin Andre Ward.

Trainer Rob McCracken says that Froch is looking sharp in training:

"He's in superb condition, he always is, and there's a hunger in his eyes that I can remember before all his big wins. I'm very confident he's going to do the business."

With Ward on the shelf, Froch and Kessler are the default top two fighters in the 168-pound division (I mean, Ward is still obviously No. 1, because he's not "officially" inactive yet), and this is a legitimate big fight. It should also be an action fight, and that's what makes it a special matchup.