As he will be the first to admit himself, Carl Frampton’s February win over Scott Quigg, in which the Irish star added (briefly) the WBA super-bantamweight title to his IBF, was a dull affair. This will not be the case in the summer when Frampton moves up to featherweight to face Mexican warrior Leo Santa Cruz. The fight, still to have its date officially announced, will very possibly be a Fight of The Year candidate.
Frampton himself, in speaking with Irish-Boxing.com, promises fans there will be plenty of action.
“Santa Cruz comes forward and throws loads of punches,” he said. “He will come to fight and put on more of a show than Scott Quigg – who didn’t want to know for the first six rounds of our fight. Santa Cruz is tough. He is a three-weight world champion but I am confident of winning.”
In terms of styles, Santa Cruz Vs. Frampton cannot fail to produce fireworks. As to who wins, it may come down to who is the tougher man, or maybe it will come down to who is the most versatile. Frampton has shown in the past in big fights how he can fight effectively on the back foot and also counter punch. Maybe these tactics will serve him best against Santa Cruz.
But whoever wins, the fans are likely to be the real winners with this one; as clichéd as that statement has become. Frampton, like Santa Cruz, can throw a lot of punches, maybe not as many per round as the Mexican star, but enough. Santa Cruz has already given us some classic fights, and this one looks like it will be added to the list. And Frampton, who will be having his second fight in America, hopes his performance will win over east coast fans.
“I will have as much support there (in New York) as Santa Cruz,” he said. “My fans are the best in the world and the support I get is out of this world. And I hope to pick up loads of support from Irish Americans on the east coast.”
If the fight is half as good as many people are sure it will be, both fighters are sure to have the fans cheering their approval.
