Frampton vs. Santa Cruz II: The Deceptively Peaceful Build Up to War
Frampton vs. Santa Cruz II: The Deceptively Peaceful Build Up to War
FloBoxing takes a look at the highly anticipated rematch between Carl Frampton and Leo Santa Cruz.
Don King once said, “I don’t promote boxing, I promote people. Boxing is a catalyst to bring people together.”
Is it that simple, though?
Archetypically, nothing brings people together like the promise of violence. The titles, glory and bad blood staked pre-fight offer narrative and hype, but ultimately boxing is entertainment. The final product needs to deliver. Fair or not, if a successful fighter finds said success in an exciting fashion, his stardom is all the more likely to grow.
Enter the curious case of this weekend’s WBA Super World featherweight title bout between Carl Frampton and Leo Santa Cruz. After delivering a 2016 Fight of the Year candidate, these two top-rated fighters will meet in an (rare) immediate rematch that is expected to deliver the same, tremendous action as their first tilt.
While another bruising affair awaits inside the squared circle, both fighters have been nothing short of cordial outside of the ring. In fact, the juxtaposition between the looming battle and current flow of pleasantries from both sides is almost a bit awkward – especially when considering the amount of punishment they’re about to inflict on one another.
“You know, I respect anyone I fight, and I’m always going to do that,” Frampton told Premier Boxing Champions in a promotional piece fittingly called ‘Frampton, Santa Cruz continue to show great respect for one another.’ “But Leo and I, we’ve definitely shown a lot of respect for each other. He’s a nice guy, and I think I’m a pretty nice guy.”
“Frampton is a great guy. He’s a family guy like me,” said Santa Cruz in the same article. “I kind of see myself in him. He’s a great fighter with great skills. I just respect that…You know he’s doing the same thing you are: fighting for his family. And knowing if you beat him, you’re going to kind of be taking something away from them. ”
“There’s no hard feelings,” he continued. “If he’s the better fighter, if he wins, I’ll respect that, and I’ll be glad to drink a beer or do a shot of tequila with him. And if I beat him, the same thing.”
And the feel-good crescendo to this happy-go-lucky march towards the battlefield? Jose Santa Cruz, the challenger’s father and trainer, has won his fight against cancer and is in remission. Leading up to the first Frampton bout, he had been undergoing treatments and was absent for much of his son’s training camp.
Don King gushed that he promoted people, not sport. Frampton and Santa Cruz are class personified, able to disarm the public with the same caliber of tactical refinement that they use to dispatch opponents. But how will this pre-fight humanity translate to ticket sales and TV ratings?
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/RagingBabe/status/824696796093878272" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
There are growing-albeit-unofficial grumblings on Twitter that there plenty of great seats are still available. And while TV ratings don’t “really” matter for cards televised on premium cable channels such as Showtime, isn’t this the type of fight that PBC should – nay, needs – to put on network TV to have any chance of crossover appeal?
It remains to be seen whether the business side prospers from Frampton-Santa Cruz II. Luckily for fans, the product almost certainly will be memorable again.
By Jonathan Moreland/FloBoxing
Is it that simple, though?
Archetypically, nothing brings people together like the promise of violence. The titles, glory and bad blood staked pre-fight offer narrative and hype, but ultimately boxing is entertainment. The final product needs to deliver. Fair or not, if a successful fighter finds said success in an exciting fashion, his stardom is all the more likely to grow.
Enter the curious case of this weekend’s WBA Super World featherweight title bout between Carl Frampton and Leo Santa Cruz. After delivering a 2016 Fight of the Year candidate, these two top-rated fighters will meet in an (rare) immediate rematch that is expected to deliver the same, tremendous action as their first tilt.
While another bruising affair awaits inside the squared circle, both fighters have been nothing short of cordial outside of the ring. In fact, the juxtaposition between the looming battle and current flow of pleasantries from both sides is almost a bit awkward – especially when considering the amount of punishment they’re about to inflict on one another.
“You know, I respect anyone I fight, and I’m always going to do that,” Frampton told Premier Boxing Champions in a promotional piece fittingly called ‘Frampton, Santa Cruz continue to show great respect for one another.’ “But Leo and I, we’ve definitely shown a lot of respect for each other. He’s a nice guy, and I think I’m a pretty nice guy.”
“Frampton is a great guy. He’s a family guy like me,” said Santa Cruz in the same article. “I kind of see myself in him. He’s a great fighter with great skills. I just respect that…You know he’s doing the same thing you are: fighting for his family. And knowing if you beat him, you’re going to kind of be taking something away from them. ”
“There’s no hard feelings,” he continued. “If he’s the better fighter, if he wins, I’ll respect that, and I’ll be glad to drink a beer or do a shot of tequila with him. And if I beat him, the same thing.”
And the feel-good crescendo to this happy-go-lucky march towards the battlefield? Jose Santa Cruz, the challenger’s father and trainer, has won his fight against cancer and is in remission. Leading up to the first Frampton bout, he had been undergoing treatments and was absent for much of his son’s training camp.
Don King gushed that he promoted people, not sport. Frampton and Santa Cruz are class personified, able to disarm the public with the same caliber of tactical refinement that they use to dispatch opponents. But how will this pre-fight humanity translate to ticket sales and TV ratings?
[tweet url="https://twitter.com/RagingBabe/status/824696796093878272" hide_media="0" hide_thread="1"]
There are growing-albeit-unofficial grumblings on Twitter that there plenty of great seats are still available. And while TV ratings don’t “really” matter for cards televised on premium cable channels such as Showtime, isn’t this the type of fight that PBC should – nay, needs – to put on network TV to have any chance of crossover appeal?
It remains to be seen whether the business side prospers from Frampton-Santa Cruz II. Luckily for fans, the product almost certainly will be memorable again.
By Jonathan Moreland/FloBoxing