George Groves focused on becoming complete fighter

George Groves: Improvement. Picture: Getty

The 26-year-old super-middleweight – who holds the WBC mandatory challenger position with Anthony Dirrell before the end of March 2015 – has elected to take on the southpaw American, who was trained by his mother Saphya, as part of the undercard to the Tony Bellew and Nathan Cleverly rematch at the Echo Arena, which also includes Anthony Joshua and rival James DeGale.

European champion Groves intends to consign the disappointment of defeat against Carl Froch in their own multi-million re-match showdown at a packed Wembley Stadium earlier this year firmly to the history books as the Londoner aims to write a new chapter in his career.

CONNECT WITH THE SCOTSMAN

• Subscribe to our daily newsletter (requires registration) and get the latest news, sport and business headlines delivered to your inbox every morning

• You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Google +

“It is obviously a risky fight, because if I lose, I lose my mandatory position, but at the same time it is the right decision,” said Groves. “I want to keep busy, I had a big fight against Carl Froch, it did not go my way, and with all of the build up and effort which went into that fight, I did not get enough out of it to justify the prep.

“I then had 12 hard rounds against [Christopher] Rebrasse and wanted to be out again before Christmas, so this is the perfect time.”

Groves believes he has not stood still since his Wembley disappointment in May, when he was knocked out in the eighth round.

And he insist he still holds big ambitions on both sides of the Atlantic.

“Something which has been instilled in me for a long time now, is just to think about yourself, not what your opponent is doing,” said Groves, now fighting under the Sauerland banner.

“I take that mentality from the gym into the ring.

“It is not about taking your eye off the ball because you lost in May, or that you might be in a bigger fight next year, I just want to go out and perform, to keep the momentum going and keep the show going for the fans. To do that, you have to be fully focused with a mindset and direction, that is what I have got at the moment, and I know there are massive fights out there for me.”

Groves added: “I always want to improve as a fighter, I want to be a complete fighter, although I don’t think I or anyone ever will be. I know where I have gone wrong in the past, so I will look to improve in those areas, that is the best way to be.

“You only get one chance, life is not a dress rehearsal, so do it right first time.”

SCOTSMAN TABLET AND IPHONE APPS

• Download your free 30-day trial for our iPad, Android and Kindle apps

• Keep up to date with all aspects of Scottish life with The Scotsman iPhone app, completely free to download and use