Jamel Herring is free to move forward with his title reign in present form.
BoxingScene.com has learned that a path has been cleared for Herring to defend his WBO junior lightweight title versus Belfast’s Carl Frampton. The two are due to collide on Feb. 27 in the United Kingdom, though previously under protest from unbeaten former featherweight titlist Shakur Stevenson who sought to enforce his status as mandatory challenger.
That is no longer an issue.
Herring is approved to enter the previously agreed upon voluntary title defense versus Frampton (28-2, 16KOs), with the condition that the winner next face Stevenson. A prior agreement called for Herring-Frampton to take place by no later than Dec. 31, 2020, a distinction which was flagged by Stevenson’s legal team in demanding that the former featherweight titlist get his due title shot in lieu of rescheduling the oft-postponed aforementioned clash.
A compromise instead came of the situation. The original order called for the Herring-Frampton winner to face Stevenson no later than 120 days after the completion of their contest, which would include a 30-day negotiation window.
The time frame for the fight to take place has been trimmed to 90 days, with the mandatory title fight to take place by no later than the end of May. Additionally, the winner of the Feb. 27 contest will only have five days from the end of the fight to negotiate terms with Stevenson to avoid entering a purse bid hearing to immediately follow.
An inquiry placed by BoxingScene.com to the WBO went unreturned as this goes to publish.
Herring (22-2, 10KOs) will attempt the third defense of the 130-pound title he claimed in a May 2019 points win over Japan’s Masayuki Ito. The Long Island, New York-bred southpaw scored a 12-round decision win over unbeaten mandatory contender Lamont Roach Jr. in Nov. 2019, which came three weeks prior to Frampton’s debut at junior lightweight in a 10-round win over unbeaten Tyler McCreary.
Plans at the time called for a head-on collision to take place last June 13th in Frampton’s hometown of Belfast, Northern Ireland. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic shut down that event, with both boxers left to take separate showcase bouts which aired live last summer on ESPN.
Frampton handled his business, scoring a 7th round knockout of late substitute Darren Traynor last August at the famed York Hall in Bethnal Green, England. Three weeks later, Herring survived an assortment of roughhousing tactics from Puerto Rico’s Jonathan Oquendo, who was ultimately disqualified after eight rounds of action last September at MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas.
Herring suffered a cut and a scratched cornea which further delayed rescheduled plans to face Frampton last December. The WBO was forgiving of such circumstances as well as the year-end lockdown in the United Kingdom in allowing this bout to proceed without further interruption.
Stevenson (15-0, 8KOs) moved up to junior lightweight last June following a brief stay as a featherweight titlist. The 2016 Olympic Silver medalist abandoned his 126-pound title reign in exchange for a number-one WBO ranking at 130 pounds. Two wins have followed at the weight—a 6th round stoppage of Felix Caraballo last June, followed by a 10-round shutout of Toka Kahn-Clary last December, with both fights taking place in Las Vegas.
Should the Herring-Frampton winner fail to comply with the modified order, the WBO junior lightweight title will be declared vacant and with Stevenson first in line to challenge for the belt versus the next highest ranked contender.
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox
