Carl Froch has admitted that Andre Ward was "rattled" and "uptight" during their final press conference ahead of Saturday's Super Six final in Atlantic City.
The pair addressed the media ahead of the bout, with Ward showing signs of stress in the exchange.
"I was quite surprised actually, he let his guard down mentally. He was very uptight and very rattled and there's no reason to be," Froch told Sky Sports.
"I've spoken the truth from the start, pointed out a few flaws in his style and a few things he does a bit aggressively, a bit naughtily with his head.
"It's dawning on him now that he's in the biggest and toughest fight of his life against someone who is brutally honest and brutal when I get in the ring."
Froch retained his WBC super middleweight title against Glen Johnson in June.