In recent
years the 122lb. Jr. Featherweight division has had two fighters, who have been
the division’s central figures. The unified WBA/WBO Jr. Featherweight world
champion Guillermo Rigondeaux and WBC champion Leo Santa Cruz. Rigondeaux,
undefeated in fifteen professional fights is widely considered the number one
fighter in the division. An argument can be made that if Rigondeaux is the
number one fighter in the division, Leo Santa Cruz could be considered 1-A as
Santa Cruz, undefeated in thirty professional fights has won world titles in
two different weight divisions.
While some
might talk of a potential unification bout between Rigondeaux and Santa Cruz to
determine who is the best fighter at 122lbs., there is another fighter who has
emerged as a player in the division. The undefeated IBF world champion Carl
Frampton. Frampton, a former European and Commonwealth Jr. Featherweight
champion won the IBF world championship in September of last year in scoring a
dominant twelve round unanimous decision in his rematch with Kiko Martinez.
Frampton’s second victory over Martinez not only earned him a world title, but
also established him as a player in the division.
Frampton’s
first title defense came on February 28th against top contender and IBF
mandatory challenger Chris Avalos at the Odyssey Arena in Belfast, Northern
Ireland. The champion used solid lateral movement and hand speed to
consistently beat Avalos to the punch. What impressed me about Frampton’s
performance in addition to how well he used his lateral movement was the
accuracy of his offense. Frampton was able to land crisp combinations on the
challenger and more or less dictated how the fight was fought from the opening
bell. Frampton’s systematic attack gradually took a toll on Avalos and
ultimately resulted in a fifth round stoppage for the champion.
Simply put it
was a dominant performance by a world champion in his first title defense. The
win over Avalos has potentially set the stage for some interesting fights in
the Jr. Featherweight division. A scenario that this observer has thought of
since Frampton’s stoppage of Avalos could result in the potential for full
unification of the Jr. Featherweight division.
In addition
to Rigondeaux, Santa Cruz, and Frampton there is another fighter who like them
is undefeated. Scott Quigg. Quigg is undefeated in thirty-two professional
fights and currently holds interim/regular champion status in the WBA’s Jr.
Featherweight ratings. Although this would theoretically give Quigg an
opportunity to challenge Guillermo Rigondeaux for his unified world title, a
fight that has gained significant interest is a potential battle between Quigg
and Frampton.
A fight
between Frampton, who is now undefeated in twenty professional fights and who
has stopped five of his last seven opponents inside the distance up against Quigg, who has stopped three of his
last four opponents is certainly intriguing. A fight between the two would
definitely be a draw in the United Kingdom and would also be a fight that would
draw the interest of Boxing fans here in the United States. Quigg, who last
fought in November of last year scoring a twelve round unanimous decision over
Hidenori Otake has scored twenty-two knockouts in his thirty wins as a professional.
In comparison to Quigg, Frampton has scored fourteen knockouts in his twenty
career wins. Both fighters have registered career knockout percentages of
nearly 70% and a fight between the two would be a battle between two highly
skilled fighters who can box and have shown the ability to end fights early.
What could
result in full unification of the Jr. Featherweight division is if Frampton,
Quigg, Rigondeaux, and Santa Cruz were to take part in what would amount to be
a two fight box off where the winners would face each other for the undisputed
Jr. Featherweight world championship. It is important to remember that a fight
between Frampton and Quigg has not been signed, nor has a potential fight
between Rigondeaux and Santa Cruz.
This observer
however, believes the possibility of the potential fights taking place is
certainly realistic. If a box off involving the four were to take place it
would bring arguably the four top fighters of the 122lb. Jr. Featherweight
division together to determine an undisputed champion. It is something that
would be a positive for the sport. Bring it on!
“And That’s
The Boxing Truth.”
The Boxing
Truth® is a registered trademark of Beau Denison All Rights Reserved.
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Denison on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Beau_Denison
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