Former featherweight world titleholders Oscar Valdez and Carl Frampton each make their debut in the junior lightweight division in separate fights on Saturday night and Top Rank chairman Bob Arum told ESPN that each has a world title fight at stake.
Arum, who promotes both fighters, said he has a plan in mind that would see Valdez and Frampton each land shots at 130-pound world titles against two of the titleholders he promotes — Valdez against Miguel Berchelt and Frampton against Jamel Herring — as long as they are successful in their 10-round bouts at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on the ESPN+ card (10 p.m. ET with preliminary bouts streaming beginning at 6:30 p.m.).
Valdez will take on Mexican countryman Andres Gutierrez (38-2-1, 25 KOs) in the main event and Frampton, who is also a former unified junior featherweight titleholder, will meet Tyler McCreary (16-0-1, 7 KOs), of Toledo, Ohio, in the co-feature.
If Valdez (26-0, 20 KOs), 28, who made six featherweight title defenses before vacating in early August to move up in weight, wins Arum said he would look to match him in his next fight with titleholder Miguel Berchelt, who is widely considered the No. 1 fighter in the world at 130 pounds.
Arum said Valdez, manager Frank Espinoza and trainer Eddy Reynoso have all told him they want the fight with Berchelt next. Berchelt (37-1, 33 KOs), 28, of Mexico, has also said he is interested in such a marquee match.
“They told me they want Berchelt after this fight,” Arum told ESPN. “They said, ‘Bob, this is an order. We want you to get Berchelt and we want that to be the next fight.”
Valdez is definitely on board for what would be the biggest fight of his career.
“I want to fight Miguel Berchelt,” Valdez said. “Listen, there’s no personal beef there, but I feel like he’s the top guy at 130 pounds. I want to fight the best, and Berchelt is the best. I’m only focused on Gutierrez for now, but I also visualize the future.”
As for Frampton (26-2, 15 KOs), 32, of Northern Ireland, who will be ending an 11-month layoff since a competitive decision loss challenging featherweight world titlist Josh Warrington last December, Arum said a win likely would propel him into a fight with junior lightweight titlist Jamel Herring (21-2, 10 KOs), 34, of Coram, New York.
“Frampton said to me, ‘My dream is to win another world title and when I win this fight on Saturday I want you to get me Herring,'” Arum said. “I said OK because Herring wants to fight him too. So you have two possible big fights that are riding on what happens on this card Saturday night. We want to make interesting matches and have fights lead to fights. That is what this will do.
“We’re looking to do as many as even-money fights as we can. It won’t always be possible with these cockamamie mandatories but I told my people let’s look to do that. Doing the fights with Valdez and Berchelt and Herring with Frampton, they are the kinds of fights we want to do.”
Frampton is excited to have a title shot riding on Saturday’s fight.
“I want to win this fight, but I want to knock this kid out,” Frampton said “It’s a must-win. I have to win this fight to fight a champion in my next fight. I want to fight for a world title in my next fight, so I must beat Tyler McCreary. The plan is to become a three-weight world champion. That’s my goal.
“Ireland has a rich history in boxing champions. We’ve produced so many great fighters — and we’re still doing it — but to be the guy on top and be the first and only guy to win three titles in three different divisions, it would mean the world to me.”