Carl Frampton preserved his unbeaten record with a split-decision win over Scott Quigg on Saturday night.
The Jackal won Quigg’s WBA super-bantamweight world title to unify the division with his IBF belt too.
The judges scored the fight 116-112, 116-112 and 113-115 in favour of Frampton at the Manchester Arena.
Intriguingly, Frampton added two more pounds overnight than the larger Quigg before they took the scales for a final weight check.
A ten-pound limit for extra poundage on the morning of the fight was in force and as Saturday dawned Frampton seemed to have judged it perfectly.
The Jackal had added 9 ? lbs to weigh 9st 5 ? lbs. Quigg was only 7 ? lbs heavier than at Friday?s formal weigh-in, at 9st 3 ? lbs.
The IBF have made the morning-after check obligatory of late and as their champion Frampton had the experience of doing this seven times previously.
Quigg, as WBA champion, was submitting to the regime for the first time and it seemed that Frampton?s team had learned how to judge it better.
The streets of Manchester echoed to the chants and cheers of thousands of fans making their way to the fight.
It all appeared good humoured and it seemed that none would be deflected from watching this most ballyhooed battle, at any price.
Supporters of both Quigg and Frampton were repeatedly turning down offers of more than ?300 for nose-bleed seats in the eves of the Arena?s roof.
The tensions between the protagonists transferred to the crowd as the ring walks neared.
The singing was deafening but there were nerves as well as excitement in the massed voices.
The cacophonous amalgam of cheers and jeers which greeted each man as he came to confront his destiny suggested that Frampton had a larger contingent of support than home-town Quigg in the Anglo-Ulster crowd of 20,000. But the overall, overwhelming effect was bedlam. Would either of them crack under this pressure? At first they were more wary of each other than the size of the occasion. The action was minimal, with Frampton just about edging the first with his more frequent jab.
The Frampton jab continued to dominate and Quigg?s face was already reddening in the second round. The Bury boy got into the action with a couple of hooks, one of which landed, but the second round had slipped from him, also.
The perceived wisdom was that Quigg?s best chance was with a first-half KO but at this rate Frampton looked like winning the fight just with his jab. Quigg again landed a couple of glancing hooks but it was the odd punch against several and was slipping behind.
The fourth round still saw no sign of Quigg?s trademark body shots. In fact Frampton landed his first blow to the midriff. Most of Quigg?s swings were out of range and Frampton was beginning to pick his game plan apart.
Frampton was beginning to mesmerise his opponent, swaying his left hand in front of Quigg like a cobra about to strike. Which he did with increasing ferocity. Quigg was being bamboozled and even failed to connect with a desperate lunge in the last seconds of the fifth. If he wanted a knock out from the first bell, he was becoming in dire need of one now.
The danger for Quigg was that if he took chances he might walk onto a sucker punch. The warning was there with a uppercut in another classy round for the IBF champion.
With half the fight gone Quigg knew he needs to find something spectacular. Even Frampton begged him to come out of his shell by standing with his arms wide apart. He did his best to oblige and the increased effort roused his portion of the crowd for the first time since the start. The Mancunians fell quiet again as Quigg missed with a swing and was punished for his trouble. A brave effort in the final seconds may have gone on the scorecard with a share of the seventh.
Finally Quigg was in full forward gear but his punching was not clean and as the eighth came to an end Frampton?s barrage made it a second even round in succession on my card.
By the ninth it was neeeds must and Quigg mounted a cavalry charge. His best shot of the night so far, a crunching left, looked for a moment as if it might force Frampton to touch down his knee but the Jackal reeled away to safety. As he did for the rest of the ninth, even though I couldn?t but help myself give Quigg his first success, for effort.
By the tenth we had the fight we expected. Quigg was giving it everything but even in the rougher exchanges Frampton was still the boss. The accuracy and hand speed of Frampton are the handiwork of a champion.
Frampton was caught with a sharp opening salvo in the eleventh but showed no sign of weakening or slowing, coming back with damaging combinations of his own. He then went to the body with a vengeance. Quigg steeled himself to shake the Ulsterman but was then warned for hitting behind the head. Despite that though it was his best round.
The whole arena was on its feet saluting them as they come out for the last. Quigg was fighting as if he knows he must land the KO. It was a grandstand finish from Quigg. But even if you give him this round, which I did, Frampton must’ve be well ahead on the cards.
