After 1 minute 30 of the ninth round when referee Howard Foster jumped into stop the fight, most fight fan was appalled at the decision. The first words from Sky's commentators were "that's going to be controversial" and in the Sky studios Amir Khan had his hands in his face yelling "oh my god and David Haye went on to say it has a bad stoppage. Howard Foster had a disastrous night; despite the poor stoppage he allowed Froch to get away with blows to the face after he called break and did nothing over the tactics of Groves consistently leaning over Froch's face to push him back, which is not allowed. George Groves isn't a stranger to Howard Foster as he was the official for his close fight against James DeGale back in 2011, when another controversial issue surrounded the referee arose prior to the fight, Howard Foster liked a post on Facebook which suggested Froch would end the fight in the 9th round. Having a neutral official for a fight of this magnitude is crucial: a domestic based UK referee has more awareness of the fighters history, legacy and reputation they have in Britain. A foreign official will not have the same knowledge as Howard Foster on the fighter's and will hopefully judge the fight based on what happens on the night.
