Frampton vs McCreary Preview

Frampton vs McCreary Preview

By Will Collett

Having not fought since his loss to Josh Warrington last December, Carl Frampton looks to make short work of up and coming American prospect Tyler McCreary in his hunt for a world title in a third weight category.

His recent inactivity in the ring follows a freak injury which put an end to his scheduled bout against Emmanuel Dominguez in Philadelphia back in August.

Hoping to bounce back and quash rumours of being over the hill, a dominant performance against McCreary would put Frampton in a great position heading into 2020. Securing the win this Saturday would be a great first step in his new lucrative contract with American promotional team Top Rank.

The current carrot being dangled in front of the Irish star is the dream of becoming a three weight world champion, a feat which would surely cement him as Ireland’s greatest ever fighter.

WBO super-featherweight champion Jamel Herring has publicly stated his desire to fight Frampton in the new year, so it is critical that he remains focused and does not overlook McCreary, who could easily put a spanner in the works.

Despite McCreary being a live dog in the fight, there is a huge gulf in experience at world level. Frampton is a proven and classy operator, however, it is yet to be seen the level of which McCreary can perform at.

This is one of the dangers of taking fights against such opponents. The ceiling as to how well they can perform is yet to be known, and as an unknown quantity this offers a relatively large risk.

The risk becomes much larger if the opponent is overlooked. Whilst this is unlikely to be the case with McCreary, it is all too common for fighters to get caught looking too far ahead, planning future fights.

This fight is being fought at a catchweight of 128 lbs, believed to be Frampton’s choice, to give himself the chance to explore the options of two weight categories moving forward. Despite being comfortable at the weight, Frampton will be giving away a large height and reach advantage.

Throughout camp however, Frampton’s coach Jamie Moore will have been concocting the perfect plan to negate the natural advantages that McCreary holds over him.

Sparring awkward fighters to get used to McCreary’s style will have been critical in the build up to this fight. Once the first few rounds have passed and Frampton has his gauge of McCreary, his superior ring craft and speed should be the key factors in the fight.

Putting on a career best performance and getting the victory over a two-weight world champion in Carl Frampton, would undoubtedly be the highlight of McCreary’s short career so far. A win here would springboard himself onto the world stage and set up for a world title shot in the new year.

Whilst right now, this situation seems to be just a dream, it is very much a situation that his camp is confident in becoming a reality.

Moore has expressed that following a victory next month, his wish is for his man to challenge Herring for his world title at super-featherweight and then retire.

Whilst there is a lot to do before that comes in to place, finishing what has been an outstanding career in such a way, is something that most boxers only dream of.

Whilst the Herring fight seems to be a top priority for both parties, other options remain if for some reason the fight can’t be made. Whilst the likelihood of Leo Santa Cruz taking the trilogy fight is slim, a rematch of a fight of the year contender against Josh Warrington could be on the cards if Warrington is unable to pin down an opponent for a unification himself.

The Frampton vs Warrington fight is one that the British public can easily get behind, giving the IBF champion a chance to put to bed the notion that Frampton had an off night, whilst Frampton himself would look to right the wrongs that led to his most recent loss in a fight that would earn them both huge sums of money.

Before any of this can be considered, Frampton has an important task in Las Vegas and must produce a performance that demands for these big fights to be made.