If a world title showdown is to happen at Carl Frampton’s beloved Windsor Park in Belfast, he will have to overcome Horacio Garcia first. The Mexican fighter from Guadalajara will be cheered on by Saul ’Canelo’ Alvarez on Saturday night in Belfast’s SSE Arena. His compatriot’s presence, according to Frampton, will not distort his focus. Because winning, is the only option for Frampton.
This does not mean, that wining is in anyway a given. But ‘Frampton Reborn’ is about new beginnings, so winning is a necessity. Garcia, the underdog, is by no means a standard stepping stone for the revitalisation of Frampton’s career. Garcia, however, is teak tough and with a record of note – 33-3-1 – Frampton may well have to dig deeper than the perception might be.
It’s been a tough year for Frampton. His re-match against Leo Santa Cruz in the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas in January, was an opportunity to cement his reputation. He had beaten Santa Cruz for the WBA featherweight world title fight, in July 2016, becoming the first Northern Irish fighter to secure world titles in two weight divisions.
But at the beginning of this year, Frampton’s heart was not enough against Santa Cruz who had more technical control than his opponent. The Mexican’s longer range added to the control. It was close in the end, but with two judges calling it 115-113 and one a 114-114 draw, it was a fair result. With it, went the featherweight title.
This summer gone, the comeback was on. An eliminator for the WBC featherweight title was arranged for the SSE Arena. Andres Gutierrez, from Querétaro in central Mexico was lined up. When Frampton missed weight, something which he later described as “unprofessional”, it meant that the fight lost a lot of its meaning. But worse was to follow when Guiterrez fell in the shower, in the process suffering an open cut under his chin, bruising to his head and nose as well as chipping two of his teeth.
24 hours before the scheduled bout, it was called off. Barry McGuigan’s Cyclone Promotions made the announcement and the homecoming had collapsed a day before a capacity crowd were due to travel to Belfast.
Things came to a head, when, on August 21st, Frampton confirmed that he was parting company with Cyclone Promotions. The fact that Gutierrez was to be the opponent in the first place is something that is believed to have irked Frampton. He had hoped for a higher profile opponent to help snap his career back to life. Clear that there were issues at play, the split was still something of a surprise.
Frampton though, has moved on, linking up with Jamie Moore, the former light-middleweight boxer who survived an assassination attempt in Marbella, in 2014. The two men seem to have found each other at the right time. Moore was tired of training fighters {Tommy Coyle aside} who he felt lacked the necessary commitment. With Frampton though, he found a kindred spirit. Frampton now spends his weekends at home in Belfast and trains in Moore’s gym in Manchester during the week.
Also signing a promotional deal with Frank Warren, the dynamics have changed, and there is now a freshness to the affable Belfast fighter. A freshness his ring style may need if he is to beat Garcia on Saturday. Garcia has never been stopped and will have the capacity to be relentless and resilient in equal measure. It promises to be a firm test for Frampton.
