IBF champion Carl Frampton overcame a tough opponent in WBA champion Scott Quigg to unify the super bantamweight titles?
Saturday night at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England, IBF super bantamweight champion Carl Frampton overcame a tough opponent in WBA super bantamweight champion Scott Quigg to unify the titles via split decision after 12 rounds. One judge saw it 115-113 in favor of Quigg, while the other two judges scored the fight 116-112 for Frampton.
Carl ?The Jackal? Frampton, the tough kid from Northern Ireland, is now the IBF and WBA champion.
Manchester resembled little Belfast with the majority of the 21,000 crowd cheering on the Northern Irish battler from the opening to closing bell of a much-anticipated matchup. Fighting out of the blue corner in black trunks with red and white trim, Scott Quigg, from Bury, Lancashire, England, entered into the ring with a record of 31-0-2 with 23 KOs. Frampton, fighting out of the red corner with white trunks with gold trim, took to the ring with an unblemished record of 21 wins and no losses with 14 knockouts to his credit.
The Northern Irishman was the victor in the end, despite a nervy and brave performance from Scott Quigg in the latter part of the fight.
In the first two rounds the champions, who have been at loggerheads in the buildup to the fight, were busy sizing up their respective opponent. But it was Frampton who took the initiative by aggressively taking the fight to the defensive-minded Quigg. The IBF champ landed his signature popping jabs ensuring that it was going to be tough night ahead for the confident Englishman. As Carl cautiously threw his jab, his stance and movement made it hard work for Quigg to get fire back and missed with a big right hook. Managing to connect with a straight left, the ever brave Frampton soaked it up and kept moving forward and dictating the pace of the fight.
The 3rd and 4th rounds mirrored the opening rounds as Frampton continued to assert control. Quigg was on the back foot once again. Gaining momentum, Frampton looked at ease connecting continuously with his pawing jab. However, briefly, Scott Quigg eventually threw caution to the wind and caught his opponent on the temple with an overhand right, which didn?t faze his opponent. Frampton soaked it up like a sponge and kept moving forward and applied pressure throughout the 5th and 6th rounds. The first half of the fight was well and truly in the bag for Carl Frampton.
While Frampton was using his head and boxing smart, it was apparent that the fight could still go either way. In the opening of the 7th round, Frampton connected with a body shot in the same fashion that Quigg has previously inflicted on his previous opponents. It was almost a sign of whatever you can do I can do better. But all was not lost for Scott Quigg as he launched his own assault with Frampton recovering well and although he was against the ropes, he ducked and weaved his way out of another onslaught of Quigg?s notable powerful combinations.
Was the tide about to change in Quigg?s favor? Ring magazine?s trainer of the year, Joe Gallagher isn?t a man who beats about the bush and gave it to him straight, signaling that Scott had to up his game or else the taste of defeat was on the menu.
Scott Quigg obliged and in the championship rounds of the fight, he brought his A-game. He demonstrated, yet again, why he is a dangerous fighter. Opening up with a series of combinations and his signature body shots, he had Frampton momentarily in trouble in the 10th and 11th rounds. While Quigg looked re-energized, Frampton appeared to tire and was on the receiving end of some punishment as Quigg had finally become the aggressor.
Clearly shaken but still intact, Carl was heard asking his trainer Shane McGuigan if it was the last round. Showing a true sportsmanship, both of the fighters embraced each other before the final round. Still, Carl seemed to wind back the clock in round 12 and displayed the same level of performance as he did in the opening rounds of the fight. It was a gutsy performance that shook off the lackluster rounds that preceded it.
When the bell rang to end the fight, both fighters again embraced as they waited for the judges? scorecards. With the split decision favoring Carl Frampton, he looked delighted as well and everyone associated with Tigers Bay native joined him in song.
The new IBF/WBA super bantamweight champion has already earmarked a fight with Leo Santa Cruz, but I?m sure Guillermo Rigondeaux will have something to say about that.
Congratulations Carl Frampton! A true son of Ulster.
