Date confirmed for Frampton v Santa Cruz rematch

The date for Carl Frampton’s highly-anticipated rematch with Leo Santa Cruz has been confirmed by the Bible of Boxing.

‘The Jackal’ will defend his WBA featherweight title for the first time against the former champion on Saturday January 28th according to Ring Magazine – who cite multiple sources.

A venue has not yet been decided, with the MGM Grand in Las Vegas and the Barclays Centre in New York both currently on hold

The pair met in a Fight of the Year contender at the latter in July. Afterwards, Mexican-American Santa Cruz would claim that the judges were influenced by Frampton’s large support.

While Frampton would have liked to defend his belt in his native Belfast, the lack of a large venue and Irish weather preventing an outdoor bout, meant that a Titanic City tussle never seemed likely.

Frampton has stated that he is unwilling to travel to ‘El Terremoto’s’ home city of Los Angeles as a point of principle. Additionally, while it remains an option, Santa Cruz would not be keen on a return to the Irish-American heartland of New York. Therefore Las Vegas always looked like the likeliest option and is said to be the front-runner

The prolonged negotiations also sadly eliminated the chance of the bout happening by the end of 2016.