This was a spectacular event on Saturday. Leo Santa Cruz ripped the belt at Bantamweight back from the hands of the ever scrappy Carl Framptom. The first fight was a mental lapse for Leo, who didn't have his sick father in his camp. Not to make too many excuses, Carl has a very difficult style to deal with. He fights like another version of Frank Edgar, with the same punch absorbing and busy infighting style. He leans forward into your chest and keeps side to side movement, hooking off 3-4's to the body and head. He doesn't really have any dangerous jab game. And he also would benefit from adding in uppercuts to his attack.
Leo Santa Cruz made this fight harder than it had to be by fighting inside yet again in the rematch. However, he fought with intensity and determination, making airtight and precise decisions. He said, around the time the rematch was made, that he would retire if he lost this fight, and that he never should have lost. He backed every word of that up in this rematch. I had the fight 8-4 for Leo at worst. I really see it 9-3. A lot of people are saying that they had no idea that Leo could box, and I laugh. When I talk about how retarded the world is getting, I'm waived off, but the proof remains regardless. Look how quickly the Mares fight is forgotten, where he boxed the stuffing out of Abner Mares for 12 rounds. Leo has always had skills and amazing abilities. He adjusts to his opponents.
Leo is not just a good fighter. He is a rare gem. I can't think of more than a few fighters over the last few generations, that had Leo's physical gifts of power and length with great movement and boxing ability, along with incredible infighting ability. You just don't see it often. Yet the haters mount. When I heard the commentary and saw the fact that Frampton was still undefeated, I was worried that they would steal this fight from Leo. It was not a close fight. Leo won almost every single exchange. And Frampton tried to utilize the front running, arrogance game that everyone has adopted from Mayweather. He thumbed his nose at every combo or shot and plodded forward. He did get stronger as the fight went on, which is why Leo had to manage his stamina. Frampton goes for haymakers in the later rounds, and sits down for knockouts. To aid that, he has a huge head and can eat shots like a little pit bull. He is already short, and fights even lower like a mini Tyson.
Leo should have kept spinning Carl and letting the straight go at the end of combinations like he did early in the fight. Carl stopped respecting his jab and timing his way in. I did like the body punching that Leo implemented. It slowed Frampton down and did good damage. He visibly stopped him in his tracks on several occasions. That left hand of Leo's is beautiful. And he's orthodox. That's what I like about him. His uppercuts were well thrown and set up. his 3's and 5's to the body did a lot of the work for him, with the sniper right hand in his back pocket for him.There was a knockdown in the 3rd round or so, that was ruled a slip, and I am still disgusted by that. The entire agenda was to either protect Frampton with a win, or at least fuel a rematch for him. Leo clearly lands a well timed left hook, and Frampton falls back and waives his gloves after clearing his head, and referee Kenny Bayless jumps in as he is going down and rules it a slip. The commentators quickly chime in saying it was a slip. That was one of the most suspect moments I have seen in sports. Even when a knockdown isn't clear, but dicey, there is a pause to assess what happened by looking at the condition of the downed fighter and possibly a replay. Their feet did not look tangled at all. If your feet are positioned poorly and you eat a hook and go down, it's a knock down. You don't get a do over because of an error.
The fight was excellent. It was tagged as a step down from the last fight which was more of a war, but that doesn't surprise me. Look at the boxing match that continues to get fight of the year. People don't understand chess. If there is punching with purpose, it annoys viewers, who don't get what's going on, and would rather see two fighters swing like crazy for 36 minutes, and not defend themselves at all.
The rematch will be in Ireland, which is fair as Carl came over to defend. I respect that he agrees with the decision, but he knows that it was a blowout. He had this clause in place from the start. He was hoping that he could fight Leo close and get the nod and move on. He got torched, and the media assists him in calling it close, to set up a rematch for monetary purposes. He even accused Leo of stealing rounds in the last 15 seconds. What a laugh. Go back and watch the fight, and you tell me who was hooking off at the end of rounds and bullrushing the entire fight. And what did you see Leo doing. He never had to steal a round, because he controlled every one of them while tatooing Carl's face. That's the reason Leo looked fresh after the fight, and Carl Frampton's face looks beat like Mrs. Doubtfire. He's a clown in that regard. Great event though, and Leo once again proves himself.
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