Dave ‘Boy’ McAuley backs Jackal to snatch world crown in Belfast

In his prime he collected the IBF world flyweight title and engaged in ring wars with the likes of Fidel Bassa, Jacob Matlala and Duke McKenzie. Now Dave ‘Boy’ McAuley reckons that Carl Frampton can follow in his footsteps and bring a world crown home on September 6.

“I don’t want to be overconfident but Carl will win this fight. He has the measure of [Kiko] Martinez and I can only see one outcome on September 6,” said McAuley.

“It will be a tough fight but Kiko is a one-trick pony and I would put the house on Carl beating him. He marches forward and throws huge bombs and that is all he has to offer. Carl will be too smart for him, he has his measure and I believe he will stop him again. He will have learnt so much from the first fight.”

Despite the apparent confident in Frampton’s skills, the ex-champion has urged caution regarding Kiko’s strength and punch power so believes Carl’s best option is to stick to his superior boxing ability. By moving in and hitting Kiko with two or three shots at a time and then moving out of range again, ‘The Jackal’ can successfully negotiate his way through the fight.

“Carl is smart enough to do that and if he does then Kiko will get frustrated as the fight goes on,” continued Dave. “He will then start to take chances and Carl will punish him. Kiko can only do the one thing – but Carl can box, fight, move and he is clever. He also bangs very hard and I see him becoming our next world champion.”

The Larne native sees Martinez’s brash pre-fight chatter as mere confidence-building bravado and insists that the Spaniard will be increasingly wary of his young challenger given the fact that Carl has already knocked him out conclusively.

“It does not matter what he says in the run-up to the fight because he will know in the back of his mind that Carl stopped him the last time. Nothing else compares to that and it is something that will live with you forever.

“It will be an unforgettable night for him and when he wins it will be great for Belfast and boxing here,” concluded McAuley.