Already well known throughout his native Northern Ireland and the rest of the British Isles, Frampton is undefeated through his first 20 bouts as a professional. He sits on the cusp of potential stardom, and this fight is meant to be his introduction to the American boxing audience.
Unlike many talented up-and-comers, Frampton’s record is studded with elite competition, and not only has he defeated his opposition, he has routinely knocked them out. Top super bantamweights like Chris Avalos and Kiko Martinez have fallen under his fists, and of his 20 victories, 14 have come by knockout. That kind of finishing ability is a rare gift for a 122-pounder, and one that could make Frampton a star on both sides of the Atlantic.
Alejandro Gonzalez is undoubtedly the B-side of this matchup. His 25-1 record looks respectable on paper, but he has never defeated a meaningful opponent, and his sole step up in competition ended in a decision loss to Juan Alberto Rojas. As a 25:1 underdog, there is little question as to who is supposed to win this.
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Carl Frampton (20-0; 14 KO)
Frampton is not flashy or even a tremendously gifted puncher, but he is technically skilled, accurate and crafty. An out-fighter by nature with excellent footspeed, the foundation of Frampton’s approach is his jab, which makes up for his short arms and lack of height. He consistently paws with the left, using it to measure the distance and obscure his opponent’s field of vision. When he does break rhythm and throw it with force, it is a powerful, piercing shot.
The pawing jab is most useful, however, as a means of maintaining distance as Frampton moves in and out of the pocket. Constantly sticking his left hand in his opponent’s face tells Frampton exactly where his opponent is, and that sets up his money punch: the right hand. He is most comfortable throwing the right as a straight, but he doubles or even triples it up, mixing in uppercuts and right hooks with the cross. He has a variety of setups, shifting the timing and location regularly to keep his opponents guessing.
While he has some natural power, the ability to accurately place his shots around and through his opponent’s guard is what makes Frampton such a dangerous knockout artist. He is a tremendously gifted counterpuncher, and he excels at planting his feet and throwing the right after escaping the pocket, thereby running his opponent onto the punch and maximizing the force of the collision. His footspeed and constant in-and-out movement are important components of that counter game, but so too is his ability to pivot, frame with the left hand, and then throw the right hand to the side of the opponent’s head as he turns. Frampton’s backstepping left hook is another lethal punch, though he could stand to throw it more often.
From a defensive perspective, Frampton is rarely there to be hit, and he does an excellent job of angling off and rolling under the anticipated counters as he enters and exits. When he does decide to exchange, he is quite hittable, and his head movement comes and goes, but this is essentially nitpicking.
Alejandro Gonzalez Jr. (25-1-2; 15 KO)
There is very little information to work with on Alejandro Gonzalez, as few of his fights are available, but what is out there suggests that he is a solid boxer-puncher type.
He fights tall, working behind a clean jab that he doubles to the head and body. His right hand is reasonably crisp and packs some force behind it, but the real strength of his arsenal is his left hook. When he works his way into the pocket, he doubles or triples the left hook, mixing it up to the liver and the head. Despite his tools for fighting long, Gonzalez is at his most comfortable banging away on the inside, and he packs enough power to be dangerous in those exchanges.
On the downside, Gonzalez lacks real hand speed and is not particularly fleet of foot. While he likes to fight on the inside and is reasonably competent there, he is far too hittable, which is compounded by the fact that he does not take a great punch. In sum, Gonzalez has some talent and is a willing opponent, but he also has serious downsides.
The Pick: This is a showcase fight for Frampton on paper, and there is every reason to think that it will play out that way in practice. Not only is Gonzalez simply not on Frampton’s level -- or the level of Frampton’s last several opponents from the perspective of pure talent -- the Mexican is also precisely the kind of stylistic matchup on whom Frampton should feast.
Gonzalez is hittable and has a propensity for walking headfirst into counterpunches, which just happens to be Frampton’s specialty. I expect Frampton to dance circles around the slower-footed Gonzalez early, cracking him at will with the straight right and uppercut as the Mexican ducks into the pocket. Eventually, the Belfast native will crack Gonzalez with something big, and I think it will be early. The pick is Frampton by knockout in the third round.