Will Frampton Become Ireland’s First Three-Weight World Champion?

Carl Frampton is bidding to become Ireland’s first three-weight world champion in boxing, and that opportunity should come very soon as he is being linked with a shot at IBF super-featherweight champion Jamel Herring.

The Jackal returned to the ring back in August where he was impressive against Darren Traynor, stopping the British boxer in the seventh round. This was his second fight since losing to Josh Warrington in their IBF featherweight title contest in December 2018.

The super-featherweight division looks to be where Frampton’s future lies. His most likely next opponent won the WBO title after beating Masayuki Ito in May 2019. He has since defended his crown twice, with his latest victory coming over Jonathan Oquendo.

If a deal to fight Herring cannot be made, there are other options available to Frampton. One of them is new WBA (super) champion Gervonta Davis who recently beat Leo Santa Cruz. Tank is unbeaten in 24 fights and was very impressive in his last appearance in the ring.

Miguel Berchelt and Joseph Diaz are the other two champions in the super-featherweight division as they hold the WBC and IBF crowns respectively. The latter won that title earlier year when he beat Tevin Farmer following 12 rounds in Florida.

Frampton Already Amongst Great Irish Boxers

Frampton is one of three Irish boxers to win a world title at two different weights. His childhood hero Steve Collins did so in the 90s. Katie Taylor also matched his achievement recently, becoming the first woman to so do. She is in action later this month against Miriam Gutierrez where she is 1/25 in the boxing betting to prevail and keep her world titles.

Many boxing fans consider Collins to be the great Irish boxer of all time due to the success he had in the 1990s. He won the WBO middleweight and WBO super-middleweight crowns in back-to-back contests, beating Chris Pyatt and Chris Eubank respectively.

Collins never lost a fight as a champion in an incredible record. He had hoped to face the number one pound-for-pound boxer at the time, Roy Jones Jr, in a light-heavyweight bout, however, that match-up never materialised.

Frampton equalled Collins’ record in 2016 when he defeated Santa Cruz to land the WBA featherweight title. His victory came two years after he landed the IBF super-bantamweight prize. Now he has eyes on winning a major crown in the 126lb division.

Taylor won her second world title by beating Christina Linardatou for the WBO light-welterweight belt in November 2019. She has yet to taste defeat in 16 fights since turning professional and has strong claims for being the number one female boxer on the planet.

Taylor has since dropped back down to the lightweight division where she is the undisputed world champion. Given her success in the division, it looks unlikely that the former Olympic gold medallist will be moving up or down anytime soon.

With Taylor comfortable in the lightweight division, Frampton looks set to be the first Irish boxer to attempt to make history. At the age of 33, the Jackal is by no means past his best in the ring. He has had a fine career, but his greatest achievement may still be ahead of him.