April 3: Jamel Herring vs Carl Frampton world title bout to stream on ESPN+
The pair will finally meet next month in Dubai with Frampton aiming to become Ireland's first three-division world champion.
Jamel "Semper Fi" Herring's WBO junior lightweight world title defense against Belfast's former two-weight world champion Carl "The Jackal" Frampton - Saturday, April 3 from Caesars Bluewaters Dubai - will stream live and exclusively in the United States on ESPN+.
Herring-Frampton will headline a two-bout broadcast beginning at 3 p.m. ET/12 p.m. PT. In the 10-round junior welterweight co-feature, undefeated Kazakh star Zhankosh Turarov will fight Belfast native Tyrone McKenna.
Undercard action will stream live on ESPN+ at 1 p.m. ET/10 a.m. PT.
"This is a fight that's been in the works for a very long time, and I expect both Jamel and Carl to be at their best," said Top Rank chairman Bob Arum. "It's an even matchup, and I am pleased that fans in the United States can watch it live on ESPN+."
Herring (22-2, 10 KOs) has made two defenses of the title he won from Masayuki Ito in May 2019, most recently defeating Puerto Rican challenger Jonathan Oquendo via disqualification last September at the MGM Grand Las Vegas Bubble.
🗓 MARK THE CALENDAR 🥊
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) March 11, 2021
One of the most anticipated title showdowns in the Junior Lightweight division goes down in just over 3 weeks away in Dubai. 👀#HerringFrampton | APRIL 3 | ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/s2vwB03fsT
He was originally scheduled to face Frampton last summer in Belfast, but COVID-19 intervened. Frampton (28-2, 16 KOs), who won world titles at junior featherweight and featherweight, hopes to make history as the island of Ireland's first three-division world champion.
He has won two straight bouts since losing a unanimous decision to Josh Warrington in December 2018 for the IBF featherweight world title. In his lone ring appearance of 2020, Frampton knocked out late replacement foe Darren Traynor in the seventh round.
Undercard action streaming on ESPN+ includes: