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No room for sentiment for forward-looking McGuigan

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Barry McGuigan has played a massive role in the brilliant career of Carl Frampton so far, but the Clones Cylone’s legendary WBA featherweight title has no part in ‘The Jackal’s’ preparation for his massive Leo Santa Cruz clash.

On Saturday Frampton is hoping to put on a show for Showtime, beat Leo Santa Cruz to become a two-weight World champion, beat open the door to American notoriety, and subsequently buckle a strap his mentor famously won 31 years ago by defeating Eusebio Pedroza on a famous night in Loftus Road.

The fact the WBA featherweight World title is on the line is a common denominator between what could become two of Irish boxing’s greatest ever nights hasn’t been lost on the press – or indeed some fight fans – but McGuigan is adamant that it has not been a common theme in the build up to the eagerly anticipated fight.

McGuigan and the team he has assembled around Frampton at Cyclone Promotions are into success and not sentiment and he claims they are focused solely helping the Tigers Bay puncher overcome Santa Cruz in the Barclays Center on July 30th.

“It’s wonderful that Carl is getting the chance to fight for the 126-pound title.”

“We don’t really go into the sentimental stuff very much. It’s just a job of work and what condition he is. At 126, he’s so much stronger and camp has been fantastic. He’s looked great.”

“And yes, it’d be nice if he won my old title but that’s about it. It didn’t really matter. For him to win and to be impressed at his performance is what’s important.”

McGuigan has continually admitted that a fighter who has beaten former World champs Scott Quigg, Steve Molitor, and Kiko Martinez faces his toughest test to date in a matter of days, but believes the undefeated Belfast puncher will produce his best performance as a result.

“I believe Leo Santa Cruz will bring the very best out of him because he’s such a great fighter.”

“But I believe 100 percent that Frampton will beat him on the 30th of July.”

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