In breaking news today, top featherweight Carl Frampton has announced that he is leaving Barry McGuigan’s Cyclone Promotions. This news comes right on the heels of the old rumor mill swirling up in the case of another top fighter in pound for pound elite Andre Ward. If the whispers are to believed, Ward will soon be heading to Top Rank. No word on a potential Frampton landing spot.
Carl Frampton leaving Cyclone Promotions may lead a lot of fight fans to ask just who they are, especially ones not based in the UK. It is a fair question too as without Frampton all Cyclone seems to currently have is promising Scottish prospect Josh Taylor. There are a couple directions Frampton could go following this departure from them. I wouldn’t be surprised if Frampton self promotes a homecoming tuneup like he was supposed to have with Andres Gutierrez first, but following that he will need a new outfit. He could sign with say Matchroom, but maybe more likely he just goes the traditional PBC fighter route of not really having a set, traditional promoter. Instead PBC acts in that fashion, though of course there is always a different promoter of note listed so as to not violate the Ali Act.
As for Andre Ward, the Top Rank momentum is gaining logical steam. He is currently promoted by Roc Nation Sports, but they haven’t done well in the sport to say the least. They did basically no promotion for either of his super fights with Sergei Kovalev and it is rumored that they may get out of the game altogether. Without Andre Ward, they might as well. Adding fuel to the fire, Ward was added to the commentary booth for last night’s Top Rank on ESPN card. He has also noted that his HBO deal is up, leaving him open to participate in the ESPN partnership that he is also publicly praising. With all this, it would be surprising if Ward didn’t sign with Arum at this point.
