Who's Next for Carl Frampton? Future Fights for Britain's Newest World Champion

Carl Frampton was the star of a great weekend for Northern Irish sport—the national football team scored a surprise win in Hungary and "The Jackal" took the IBF super-bantamweight title from Kiko Martinez in front of 16,000 fans in a specially-constructed stadium in Belfast.

Frampton had beaten Martinez via ninth-round stoppage just last February, but despite flooring the Spaniard again in Round 5 of the rematch, the fight went the 12-round distance.

The hometown hero triumphed comfortably on the scorecards with two 119-108 scores and one 118-111. Perhaps the judges were a little generous to the Belfast man, but he controlled the majority of the action and was a clear winner on the night.

Although Frampton didn't find the big punch to stop Martinez again, this was arguably a more complete performance in which he proved he could fight 12 hard rounds against a championship-level performer.

Martinez entered with renewed confidence as the reigning IBF titlist and with four stoppage wins in a row, but he never came close to making it five.

Although Kiko gave everything late when trying to force the KO he needed, ripping in hurtful body shots, Frampton was nearly always able to answer with stinging shots of his own as both men dug deep and demonstrated their toughness beyond any doubt.

By attracting 16,000 exultant supporters to an outdoor stadium on a blustery Belfast evening, Frampton proved himself the biggest box-office attraction in the division—a lure that could tempt the very best opposition to the province.

There are exciting possibilities ahead for The Jackal, and here, in rough order of when the fights are likely to occur, are the challengers who stand ahead of him as he looks to unify the belts and establish himself as the world's premier super-bantamweight.

Chris Avalos is not a name to conjure with, but as it stands, he is next in line for Frampton because he is the IBF mandatory challenger.

The 24-year-old American has a 24-2 record, with his last defeat coming back in 2011 to Jhonatan Romero, the Colombian who himself held the IBF title for six months of 2013.

Avalos is co-promoted by Top Rank and, as of last week, British promoter Eddie Hearn. After Saturday's fight, as reported by the Belfast Telegraph, Hearn had this to say: "Carl Frampton did a great job on Saturday night and now the IBF have made it clear that he must fight Chris Avalos and they won't move on that."

Hearn has a good relationship with the governing body, having masterminded successful IBF title shots for Carl Froch, Darren Barker and Kell Brook. Because of that, if Frampton wants to retain his version of the title, it is very unlikely that he will be able to avoid an encounter with Avalos.

Frampton has fought his last three fights on BoxNation, but with that deal now expired, it would seem likely a fight with Avalos would land on Sky Sports, the broadcaster with whom Hearn enjoys an exclusive relationship with.

Amidst the likely wrangling with former promoter Hearn, Frampton could easily underestimate Avalos, who carries genuine KO power, having scored 18 stoppage wins from 24 bouts.

Avalos has never challenged for a world title before, but his last two wins were impressive, both inside the distance and against unfashionable but able fighters in Rolly Lunas of the Philippines and Japan's Yasutaka Ishimoto in the fight which earned him the mandatory position.

In theory, the fight should happen within the next 90 days. But that may be relaxed due to a hand injury suffered by Frampton against Martinez.

Likely Date: Late 2014/Early 2015
Difficulty: 7/10
Possible Venue: Odyssey Arena, Belfast
Box Office Appeal: 5/10
Prestige: 5/10

At 26, Leo Santa Cruz is a year younger than Frampton, but he has notched nine more fights on his record of 27-0-1 and has held the WBC belt since this time last year.

The Mexican fighter previously held the IBF title a division lower at bantamweight and has won all eight world title fights he has contested.

That run of fights has been held on U.S. soil, but Santa Cruz is not a headline fighter who attracts many fans, so it is likely that he would be the man to cross the Atlantic if a showdown with Frampton could be arranged.

After the fight on Saturday in an interview with BoxNation, Santa Cruz was the name on the lips of Frampton's promoter Barry McGuigan. And as he is the man who calls the shots, Frampton-Santa Cruz is the most likely fight once Avalos is out of the way.

Santa Cruz may sound like a fearsome challenge given his eight wins in world title fights, but the reality is that his opposition has been rather soft, as exemplified by his next title defence against Manuel Roman, a fighter ranked as the 16th-best bantamweight in Mexico on BoxRec's computerised rankings.

Certainly Santa Cruz has never beaten anyone as proven as Kiko Martinez, so despite his greater experience on the world stage, Frampton would likely start as a favourite against the California-based fighter.

Possible Date: Early Summer 2015
Difficulty: 8/10
Possible Venue: Kingspan Stadium, Belfast
Box Office Appeal: 7/10
Prestige: 8/10

Stuart Hall is not a name being linked with Frampton right now, but the fight could make a lot of sense in the not too distant future.

Hall is a former IBF bantamweight champion and will challenge for the vacant title again in October against Randy Caballero in Monte Carlo.

He is not expected to beat Caballero, but as a former IBF champion he should have no trouble being sanctioned as a voluntary challenger to Frampton's super-bantamweight crown.

At 5′8″, Hall has three inches on Frampton and easily has the frame to move up in weight—he has come in as high as 127 pounds, above the featherweight limit of 126 and the 122 pounds for super-bantamweight.

While boxing fans want every fight to be a blockbuster, that is not really realistic due to the career-shortening effects of tough contests.

If Frampton were to fight Martinez, Avalos and Santa Cruz back-to-back, it would be understandable if he then looked for a relatively easy defence. Even the redoubtable Carl Froch has the innocuous name of Yusaf Mack on his ledger, the American against whom he first defended his IBF belt.

Hall would be 35 by the time this fight could be made, and as a domestic rival with the status that comes with being a former world champion, the fight would attract enough interest for it to make financial sense.

Possible Date: Autumn 2015
Difficulty: 5/10
Possible Venue: Odyssey Arena, Belfast
Box Office Appeal: 6/10
Prestige: 3/10

Abner Mares is a three-weight world champion, starting at bantamweight and going through super-bantamweight before winning the WBC featherweight title last year.

He was viewed as the world's top featherweight, but in only his first title defence, he was shockingly wiped out by the the shop-worn Jhonny Gonzalez inside of one round a year ago in California.

While the greater financial rewards of the featherweight division made Mares' weight-hopping understandable, the nature of the defeat led to suspicions he had been too hasty to abandon super-bantamweight.

As Frampton-Martinez was broadcast, Mares took to Twitter to suggest a clash with the winner: 

I can see my self going down in weight just to fight #Frampton .. Would be a great fight. #MaresVsFrampton

— ABNER MARES (@abnermares00) September 6, 2014 

Nearly every fighter in the world harbours the dream of displaying his skills in front of U.S. audiences at the top venues such as the MGM Grand and Madison Square Garden.

Because of Frampton's popularity at home, there aren't many opponents against whom it would make sense to travel, but Mares is the one guy around the weight who can draw fans stateside.

Mares attracts crowds because of his high-octane, entertaining style, and he is right to suggest that a match with Frampton could be very exciting.

The Mexican is still only 28, so he should have plenty left. As long as he can still make super-bantamweight safely, he is one of the most formidable opponents out there for Frampton.

Possible Date: St. Patrick's Day Weekend, March 2016
Difficulty: 9/10 (providing Mares still has it)
Possible Venue: Madison Square Garden, New York
Box Office Appeal: 8/10
Prestige: 9/10

After Saturday's fight, Frampton said of the future, "There's so many options, but the one I really want to fight is Scott Quigg...I'll fight him in Manchester, I'll fight him anywhere."

Quigg, 25, and Frampton have been linked as rivals since at least 2011, but the two men have taken different paths to the top of the division.

While Quigg won the British title, Frampton held the Commonwealth belt—when Frampton won the European title, Quigg boasted the essentially bogus "regular" version of the WBA "world title".

Frampton now has a legitimate world title and thus is clearly ahead of the Manchester man in terms of achievement.

The word has always been that the two would fight when there are world titles at stake and the fight reaches peak interest. In theory, that time has come, but there's no guarantee it will happen.

A particular problem could be relations between the Frampton camp and former promoter Eddie Hearn, who now promotes Quigg. As reported by the BBC, Frampton recently said Hearn "is like an old girlfriend who won't go away."

In the long-term, you have to expect that the duo will meet at some point in the future because of the money in play. If Frampton fights Avalos next on Sky Sports and rekindles a working relationship with Hearn, that will likely bring the fight closer, and it could happen in 2015.

Quigg has been fighting indifferent opposition lately and blows hot and cold. On his best night he could trouble Frampton, and with so much pride at stake, it would be a huge occasion which the fight might even match.

Possible Date: Summer 2016
Difficulty: 7/10
Possible Venue: Etihad Stadium, Manchester
Box Office Appeal: 10/10
Prestige: 6/10

With all the attention focused on Frampton and Quigg, Kid Galahad is in danger of becoming the forgotten man of the British super-bantamweight scene.

Still only 24, the Qatar-born fighter has won the British, Commonwealth and European titles over his last three outings, belts vacated by the older British pair as they moved into world title contention.

Galahad, birth name Abdul-Bari Awad, is a product of the Ingle gym in Sheffield which has forged champions such as Prince Naseem Hamed, Johnny Nelson and most recently Kell Brook. He boxes in a similar style to Brook, i.e., not quite as eccentrically as the likes of Hamed.

With a 17-0 record, the Hennessy Sport fighter's toughest evening came this time last year against the unbeaten James "Jazza" Dickens.

Galahad ultimately outskilled and outlasted the Liverpool man, but the competitiveness of the domestic clash suggested that he is still a couple of years from dining at the top table.

There is definitely talent here, and fighting out of a gym with a record of success is a serious boost to Galahad's long-term chances—he would do well to bide his time before jumping into a contest with Quigg, or, in particular, Frampton.

Provided Galahad doesn't have to move to featherweight as he gets older, you would have to anticipate a domestic clash or two with the premier British super-bantamweights at some later date.

Possible Date: Late 2016/Early 2017
Difficulty: 6/10 but rising
Possible Venue: The O2 Arena, London
Box Office Appeal: 7/10
Prestige: 4/10

And then we came to the end. At super-bantamweight, all roads lead to Guillermo Rigondeaux, but nobody is travelling with much speed in his direction.

While Frampton has the IBF belt and Santa Cruz the WBC, Rigondeaux has both the WBO and the proper WBA title, whatever Mr. Quigg and Mr. Hearn might tell you.

Rigondeaux is also The Ring Magazine champion, the No. 1 on BoxRec and he has the division's best win—his 12-round deconstruction of Nonito Donaire.

All this in just five years and 14 pro fights since the Cuban two-time Olympic champion defected from his homeland to join Irish manager Gary Hyde's stable of boxers.

After Saturday, as quoted by the Daily Telegraph's Gareth A. Davies, McGuigan said, "We’re not interested in Guillermo Rigondeaux...he makes no money and brings no TV. He can’t draw 500 Cubans in Miami. This is a business. Don’t get me wrong, he’s fabulous but he’s an awkward, negative boxer."

Rigondeaux is such a cute boxer that right now, at 33 years old, he would be picked to win over anyone at super-bantamweight or featherweight, a higher weight where he could also potentially fight.

But time waits for no man except Bernard Hopkins, so when age begins to catch up with the Cuban, McGuigan may well change his tune. As a fighter, Frampton would no doubt want to relish the chance to prove himself as the world's best when the time is right.

What could make things more interesting is if the negotiations between Hyde and British promoter Frank Warren, reported by Dan Rafael at ESPN, come to fruition.

Were Rigondeaux to start fighting on British soil, it would seriously undermine Quigg's claim to a title and may force Frampton into an earlier showdown than his team may otherwise prefer.

The careers of boxing legends such as Sugar Ray Leonard and Floyd Mayweather have been built on fighting the right opponent at the right time, and if Frampton could catch Rigondeaux just as he declines, that could be a legacy making win.

Possible Date: Summer 2017
Difficulty: 10/10
Possible Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Box Office Appeal: 7/10 today, but 9/10 by then
Prestige: 10/10

All fight records from BoxRec.