I want Carl fight first
SELBY OFFERS CRACK AT TITLE
LEE SELBY has urged Carl Frampton to face him next and not to rearrange a clash with Andres Gutierrez.
Frampton’s fight with Gutierrez was called off just over 24 hours before the bout when the Mexican slipped getting into the bath and cracked his face off the taps.
Gutierrez was rushed to hospital with a gash under his chin, a cut nose and two broken teeth, including one that was pushed up through his gum.
Cyclone Promotions immediately set about rescheduling the event but have been struggling to find available dates at the SSE Arena in Belfast, while Gutierrez may not be ready to fight again until November.
Selby is keen for a domestic duel and warned Frampton he will not be hanging around as he eyes up a clash in October or November.
“I won’t be waiting around for nobody,” said the IBF featherweight champion. “Whoever comes first with a contract that my team are happy with, then we will be signing that and fighting.
“Should they abandon plans to rearrange with Gutierrez? That would make sense. We should do it in October or November now.
“He should come straight now into a world title fight against me. It makes sense, rather than waiting around.
“Do they know how long this guy will take to recover? I don’t know. As I say, I’m not waiting around. I want the big fights, so whoever comes first.”
Theories
Frampton appears to agree with Selby and in his column in the Sunday Life newspaper stated he is setting his sights on a world title fight before Christmas.
Selby’s management – Chris and Jamie Sanigar – are due to contact Cyclone this week to see if they want to open talks about a world title fight.
Wales’ IBF champion would prefer the fight at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, but Manchester Arena or the O2 in London are more realistic options.
Frampton will have a short break now before returning to training and sources close to his team insist he will have no issues making featherweight again.
The bizarre nature of the postponement and Frampton’s failure to make weight started conspiracy theories about why the plug was pulled by Cyclone Promotions.
But the Barry McGuigan-led promotional outfit did everything to try to get the event to go ahead, including a late search for a replacement opponent, but licensing and insurance issues stopped this.
Gutierrez, who was due to earn a career-high purse, also did everything he could, including pleading with doctors at Kingsbridge private hospital to remove ALL of his top teeth and glue the wounds together.
However, the British Boxing Board of Control doctor present advised the Mexican and his team that he would not be cleared to fight with such significant damage.