Frampton Expects Another Fan Friendly Fight Against Santa Cruz

By Keith Idec

Carl Frampton is confident he can make adjustments that’ll help him handle Leo Santa Cruz more easily in their rematch.

That doesn’t mean Northern Ireland’s Frampton feels he’ll have anything resembling an easy time with the Santa Cruz when they fight again January 28 in Las Vegas. The unbeaten WBA world featherweight champion expects Santa Cruz to be every bit as aggressive and troublesome as he was the first time they fought, July 30 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Frampton (23-0, 14 KOs) won that entertaining 12-round bout by comfortable margins on two of the three scorecards (117-111, 116-112), but settled for a majority decision because one judge scored their fan-friendly fight even (114-114). That fight featured numerous exciting exchanges and was generally regarded as a “Fight of the Year” candidate for 2016.

The 29-year-old Frampton figures he and Santa Cruz (32-1-1, 18 KOs), of Rosemead, California, will pick up right where they left off once the opening bell rings at MGM Grand Garden Arena. CompuBox credited Santa Cruz, 28, with throwing 1,002 total punches in their first fight.

“Yeah, I think with our styles, that’s just what’s gonna happen,” Frampton said during a conference call Thursday. “I think Leo’s style, in particular, he’s a typical Mexican fighter, a real warrior, non-stop, and he just tries to overwhelm opponents. And his style works against a lot of people.

“And it could work against lesser opponents, but I’ve got something different. I’ve got a lot of grit and determination, and I can give it back as good as it’s dished out to me. But I’m expecting, again, another exciting fight. I think if we fight 10 times, they’re always gonna be good fights.”

Showtime will televise the Frampton-Santa Cruz rematch as the main event of a “Showtime Championship Boxing” doubleheader (10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT). In the co-featured fight, Montenegro’s Dejan Zlaticanin (22-0, 15 KOs) will make the first defense of his WBC world lightweight title against former two-division champion Mikey Garcia (35-0, 29 KOs), of Oxnard, California.

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.