Lee Selby eyes Leo Santa Cruz-Carl Frampton winner

IBF featherweight champion Lee Selby will be in attendance this weekend when Leo Santa Cruz defends his WBA title against Carl Frampton. And as he’ll continue to scout both potential foes up close and personal, Selby believes he already has a strong inclination about both fighter’s strengths. Here’s what he told RingTV.com about this weekend’s title fight.

“Frampton is a very good boxer; he punches hard and he’s the more versatile of the two. Don’t get me wrong; I’ve heard reports that Santa Cruz mixes it up in sparring by boxing and fighting but we’ve yet to see that in the ring. Under the lights, he’s a typical Mexican who loves to attack.”

“It’s the height and reach advantages that could make life difficult for Frampton. Even though Santa Cruz is constantly applying pressure, he does throw plenty of straight punches. He doesn’t use his reach the way I do, by moving and boxing, but he can still use it by being aggressive.”

To Selby’s point, Santa Cruz will be entering the fight with a two inch height advantage and a whopping seven inch reach advantage. That could prove difficult for Frampton to overcome, but Selby still sees the fight as toss up.

“I don’t think Santa Cruz can outbox Frampton and the only way he can win is to stay aggressive from bell to bell,” he said. “If Frampton maintains his boxing and doesn’t hold his feet, then he can get the victory. It’s a real 50/50 fight and it’s hard to make a straight pick.

Selby also doesn’t hide the fact that he’s hoping for Frampton to pull off a win here and it’s pretty clear why. A unficiation fight between Selby and Frampton in the UK could earn him significantly more money than a fight against Santa Cruz in the US. But Selby says he’s happy to face Santa Cruz anyway if that’s how the cookie crumbles.