‘Mind Blowing’ – Magnitude of Jamel Herring fight dawns on Carl Frampton

Carl Frampton [28(16)-2(0)] admits it’s ‘mind blowing’ to think just what victory over Jamel Herring [22(10)-2(1)] will mean for his legacy.

The Belfast puncher was given the go ahead to challenge the WBO super featherweight world champion over the weekend.

The WBO have given the fight their blessing having come to a compromise with ‘Semper Fi’s’ mandatory challenger Shakur Stevenson – the winner of the world title fight has to fight the Rio Olympian within 90 days.

That means ‘The Jackal’ will have the chance to make history and become Ireland’s first ever three weight world champion before the year is out.

Achieve that landmark and the 33-year-old will increase his chances of becoming known as the greatest ever in Ireland’s most successful sport.

However, upon reflection Frampton has realized there is more at stake than the Irish honour. Victory over the former marine would put the Jamie Moore trained fighter up there with some of the best in Britain and some global legends of the sport.

Speaking in his popular Sunday Life column Frampton explained: “After hearing the news that I would be fighting world super-featherweight champion Jamel Herring, I took a moment to ponder just what that meant – and it gave me goosebumps.

For some time I have said that to face Herring for the chance to become the first Irish boxer to be a three-weight world champion would be very special but then it dawned on me that apart from that I would be only the fourth fighter in the history of British boxing to be a three-weight champion and then when you look down the list of global boxers who have enjoyed that achievement, it’s mind blowing.

A win over Herring would allow me to join a list of fighters that includes such legends as Sugar Ray Leonard, Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao among others and the other British fighters to have won titles at three different weights are Bob Fitzsimmons, Duke McKenzie and Ricky Burns.