It may well still prove to be a case of wishful thinking, though Matchroom Boxing boss Eddie Hearn has today stated he is confident in being able to make a deal for his fighter Scott Quigg to face IBF 122lb champion Carl Frampton in early 2016.
2nd tier WBA titlist Quigg, and the Al Haymon advised Belfast fighter – who holds a bone fide world title – have been negotiating through their respective camps over recent weeks, with numerous sticking points holding up the talks, though financial minutiae and a neutral venue for the fight are thought to be chief among them.
Today, Eddie Hearn has spoken out to Sky Sports to suggest that the deal to stage the fight is almost done, although further scrutiny of his words tells us that may not be the case at all, especially when he goes on to admit that a suitably sized neutral venue for a proposed Jan/Feb date cannot be found and that the 21,000 seater MEN Arena in Quigg’s backyard is the only venue befitting the occasion in terms of potential gate revenue that fits in with their scheduling.
“If I had to make a call, I believe this fight gets made in the next couple of weeks,” Hearn said to Sky Sports. “We’re that close now. There’s been a lot of talk about a neutral venue.
“I’m saying to Frampton and his team that we can cut the Manchester Arena in half – Team Frampton on one side and Team Quigg on the other side. 10,000 and 10,000. So he wouldn’t really be away from home.
“We’ve given up on a lot of things, conceded many things. Now I need them to concede a few because if they do, this fight will get made like that. I think it will be made in the next couple of weeks.”
Whether Frampton and his team, including his promoter at Cyclone, Barry McGuigan, will agree to the proposed Manchester venue is unclear, especially when they recently stated that is one of the main objections.
Quigg had been negotiating with ‘Filipino Flash’ Nonito Donaire until very recently, although that fell flat when talks with Frampton gained pace. Should no deal be reached just yet then it’s likely that Frampton will next fight Japanese mandatory challenger Shingo Wake, most likely in America, where he debuted in July under the Premier Boxing Champions banner.
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