to get a win. Early in the second

NOTTINGHAM, England -- It could be described as the calm before the storm but IBF super-middleweight champ Lucian Bute had a quiet day Thursday as he prepared to defend his title this weekend against Carl Froch. Bobby Orr . Bute used the day to hit the gym for a private training session in a modest section of Nottingham about 10 minutes from the city centre. Jean Bedard, president of Interbox and Butes promoter, joked that the facility smelled a bit like a hockey locker-room. Everyone in the fighters entourage is anxious for the moment when the first punches are thrown on Saturday. Bedard is aware that once the bout is over, hell be getting calls from other promoters, which could result in a bout with one of Butes other rivals, Mikkel Kessler, who will be attending the fight. "Kessler might be an attractive option," Bedard said in an interview. Bute himself isnt giving much thought to Kessler at the moment but Bedard, as a promoter, is focused on the next step because Bute will want to know what happens after the fight. "On Monday, Lucian will want to know before going on vacation when hes starting again," said Bedard, who also heads the Cage au sports restaurant chain. "Hell be continuing his quest." Bedard said that quest is aimed at being recognized as one of the best boxers in the world, if not one of the greatest boxers ever. Those are big ambitions but not misplaced ones, the promoter noted, and were part of the reason the Romanian-born Montrealer accepted a less attractive purse than usual. "Hes motivated now by a lot more than money and fame," said Bedard, noting thats perfectly consistent with his own approach even if he has to take a shortfall sometimes. "There are two ways of doing things -- either you always fight as profitably as possible or you set a medium and a long term. Sometimes just taking a step back or making a sacrifice in income can lead you somewhere." That somewhere can lead to a payday. "Lucian is at a level where its not about money," Bedard said, pointing out Bute wants to be known as the best fighter at his weight level. "To get there, you have to go through fights like Saturdays. He has to shown hes able to go outside, that hes willing to go up against the best available. "We didnt necessarily have a lot of options for that, except to go back against guys who want to make a name at Lucians expense. But Lucian is looking forward. "To do this, he had to make a (financial) sacrifice but its a calculated sacrifice that everyone is comfortable with." There was a time a few years ago when Bute could have gone with an American promoter but he would have risked ending up with a less scrupulous boss. Instead, he stuck with Interbox and appreciated their decision to let him take on Librado Andrande and also defend his title in his native Romania as he did last year. "Its really a partnership between us, we make the decisions together," Bedard said. "Were on the same wavelength. I know Lucians goals and Lucian knows why hes in boxing. There are no lengthy discussions on the next step." Bute is also serving as an inspiration to some of Interboxs other fighters, including Pier-Olivier Cote, a Quebecer who will take on Brit Mark Lloyd in one of the preliminary bouts on Saturday at the Capital FM Arena. "I dont have idols but if I have an example at Interbox, its Lucian," he said. "And he had a good model in Eric Lucas. "Lucian is very focused in that he does, hes determined, he has goals, he trains hard, he really does, as he proved in learning French," Cote said. "Hes a good example in all ways so the kids watching him cant go wrong in imitating a guy like that." Bedard also said he thinks its an advantage that Interbox is part of Sportscene Group, a diversified company, which is helpful when it comes to negotiations. The cold, hard cash is not always a key point. "Its good for our boxers because its not life-and-death when were negotiating," Bedard said. "We look at the whole situation, how it can help promote the sport in general and fuel our other platforms." Michal Rozsival Jersey . Right behind him was a Tiger Woods that looked all too familiar. Sabbatini played bogey-free over his final 12 holes, and despite missing a five-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole, put together a 3-under 69 in the cool, blustery conditions at Muirfield Village to take a one-shot lead going into the weekend. Brandon Saad . Their finish was pretty good too. The Kings peppered goalie Roberto Luongo early in the first period and scored a couple of shootout goals to earn a 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks.http://www.nhlblackhawkshockeystore.com/red-28-steve-larmer-womens-jersey/ . Pau Gasol had 23 points and 17 rebounds, and injury-riddled Los Angeles used its sixth different starting point guard of the season in a 110-99 victory over the Utah Jazz on Friday night. St. Paul, MN (Sports Network) - Brad Staubitz was credited with the game- winner in the second period, and Minnesota kept its slim playoff chances alive with a 4-2 win over lowly Edmonton. Antti Miettinen, Marek Zidlicky and Martin Havlat all scored a goal apiece, but the Wild still trail Chicago by eight points with five games remaining for eighth place in the Western Conference standings. Chicago also has a game in hand. Niklas Backstrom made 33 save in the win, the teams second straight following a debilitating eight-game slide. Linus Omark and Tom Gilbert each scored for the Oilers, who have lost 16 straight road games against the Wild. Nikolai Khabibulin was beaten four times on 22 shots in the loss, Edmontons 11th in a row. We didnt measure up quite like we needed to, Oilers head coach Tom Renney said. But were not packing it in. Were not quitting. Miettinens tip-in onn the power play 7:24 into the game was followed by Zidlickys snap shot from in front just 35 seconds later. Keith Magnuson Jersey. We play better when we dont have to chase, Backstrom said. The last couple weeks have been tough ... so its good to get a win. Early in the second, a neutral zone turnover resulted in a rush for Minnesota and Staubitz finished it off for his second goal of the season. Havlats slap shot at the 13:13 mark made it 4-0. Gilbert and Omark each scored on the man advantage. Gilberts came with 40.7 seconds left in the middle stanza, and Omark lit the lamp with 5:16 remaining in the final period. GAME NOTES:Minnesota hasnt lost when hosting Edmonton since Jan. 16, 2007...The Wild won back-to-back games for the first time since a three-game run from Feb. 9-12...The Oilers are on their longest skid since an 0-11-2 slide from Dec. 31-Jan. 30 of last season. wholesale authentic nfl jerseys ' ' '