Carl Frampton challenges Jamel Herring for the WBO super-featherweight title in Dubai on Saturday night and ‘The Jackal’ is a 5/7 shot to be crowned a three-weight world champion.
Frampton has previously held the IBF and WBA super-bantamweight belts, as well as the WBA super-featherweight crown, and the Belfast hero would cement his legacy with a victory over Herring.
BROADCASTER CONFIRMED
Carl's quest to become the first Irish three-weight world champion will be free to air for UK fans! pic.twitter.com/kb1qZdvSgi
— Inside Fighting (@inside_fighting) March 31, 2021
‘The Jackal’ has said that he would walk away from boxing should he lose in Dubai on Saturday night, but that’s a decision that Frampton is unlikely to have to make and the Belfast banger looks a nice price to dethrone Herring.
Frampton Experience could be Key
Frampton has been involved in some top-level dust-ups down the years and there’s no doubt that he has mixed it with the better calibre of opponents.
The Northern Irishman has been in with excellent performers Scott Quigg, Leo Santa Cruz, Josh Warrington and Nonito Donaire. Warrington didn’t do much for the form when losing to Mauricio Lara earlier this year, but that looks to be a blip on the Leeds Warrior’s otherwise excellent record.
Frampton is a year younger than Herring, but the big question is does he have enough left in the tank to win world titles?
If anything, motivation and desire are bigger question marks than the physical aspect of Frampton’s game and, in fairness, the Belfast banger has made easy work of Tyler McCreary and Darren Traynor in his last two fights.
Frampton is a straight-talking character and it’s probably fair to assume that if his heart wasn’t in it he wouldn’t be stepping in the ring on Saturday night. It’s possible that he views this clash as an opportunity to go out on a high and that should ensure that we see another high-class performance.
If this fight was taking place three or four years ago there would be few doubts about a Frampton victory, but he would also be a far shorter price and perhaps the betting looks to underplay his chances.
Champion Status a Red Herring
Herring is the champion, after taking the belt away from Masayuki Ito in 2019 and successfully defending against Lamont Roach and Jonathan Oquendo.
However, Ito has been comprehensively beaten by Hironori Mishiro since and the clash against Oquendo was pretty much a no-contest after the Puerto Rico puncher was disqualified in the third round.
Semper Fi has won 22 of his 24 fights since turning professional in 2012, with his two defeats coming against Ladarius Miller and Denis Shafikov. Those are both decent boxers, but they would be a step down from the level that Frampton has operated at.
Frampton is stepping-up to challenge at super-featherweight, which would usually be a slight concern, but Herring isn’t a big-puncher and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Frampton walk through the American and give him the toughest night of his career.
The fight is fancied to go the distance, however, with Frampton eventually coming out on top.
*All odds correct at time of writing