Barry McGuigan is hoping for the perfect birthday present from his protégé tomorrow night, with the Clones Cyclone calling on Carl Frampton to deliver a knockout in his first world-title defence.

Chris Avalos has branded Carl Frampton a dancing "fairy" as he continued his efforts to rile the champion ahead of Saturday night’s world-title showdown in Belfast.

‘The Hitman’ is first on the hitlist for Ireland's new champ.

Andy Lee is hoping to make a November ring return after narrowly missing out on a world title shot against Miguel Cotto.

Carl Frampton insisted his world-title win is merely the first step on a long road to glory after claiming the IBF super-bantamweight championship crown in Belfast on Saturday night.

Carl Frampton ended Northern Ireland’s long wait for another boxing world champion on a night to savour in Belfast last night as he pounded Kiko Martinez to swipe away the Spaniard’s title.

The iceberg that is Kiko Martinez will be in the opposite corner to Carl Frampton tonight, in a ring which stands on the slipway from which the Titanic was launched.

Kiko Martinez refused to get drawn into another war of words with Belfast’s Carl Frampton yesterday, but a tense atmosphere hung over their final pre-fight press conference ahead of tomorrow night’s world-title showdown.

Barry McGuigan has hailed Carl Frampton’s world-title challenge as a ‘statement event’ after unveiling Belfast’s Titanic Quarter as the novel location for a September 6 date with IBF champion Kiko Martinez.

Carl ‘The Jackal’ Frampton is on the cusp of an IBF world title shot after a six-round demolition job on Jeremy Parodi at a sold-out Odyssey Arena in his native Belfast on Saturday night.

One punch, that’s all it took, one punch so short and so sharp that many in the raucous partisan 4,000 crowd in Belfast’s fabulous Odyssey Arena missed it.

Carl Frampton secured the European super-bantamweight title this evening with a stunning ninth-round knockout of Kiko Martinez in Belfast.

Carl Frampton hopes an impressive victory in the Odyssey Arena tonight will help secure a coveted world title shot.

Kiko Martinez made it to Belfast for fight week at the third time of asking, and at yesterday’s ‘Unfinished Business’ press conference vowed he won’t be leaving the city without his European title.

Belfast’s Carl Frampton has retained his Commonwealth super-bantamweight crown with victory over Ghana’s Prosper Ankrah in Sheffield on Saturday night.

WILLIE “Big Bang” Casey is ready to return to the ring under new management for a tilt at the durable French super bantamweight, Daniel Kadjo, at the Limerick Institute of Technology on September 3.

WILLIE “BIG BANG” CASEY will be back in the gym in two weeks, according to his trainer, Phil Sutcliffe, who admitted yesterday that they were all very disappointed with Saturday night’s loss to Guillermo Rigondeaux.

WITH a dazzling array of powerful punches delivered with pinpoint accuracy it took Guillermo Rigondeaux less than three minutes to end Willie “Big Bang” Casey’s world title hopes before a frenzied following at the Citywest Convention Centre on Saturday night.

GUILLERMO “El Chacal” Rigondeaux returned to his training camp in Houston, Texas, yesterday with words of warning for Willie “Big Bang” Casey in advance of their WBA title fight at the Citywest Conference Centre on March 10.

WILLIE “Big Bang” CASEY will touch gloves with the two-time Olympic champion Guillermo Rigondeaux for the WBA super bantamweight title at the Citywest Conference Centre on January 19 following agreement between the camps.

WILLIE ‘Big Bang’ Casey could be the ideal opponent for the two-time Olympic champion Guillermo Rigondeaux, according to the Cuban’s manager Gary Hyde.

THE crowd that packed the UL Arena in Limerick last Saturday night came for high-class, high-energy boxing. They got just that and, as a bonus, they left with an inspirational story to cherish in these gloomy times.

WILLIE ‘BIG BANG’ CASEY will headline a big professional boxing show at Neptune Stadium, Cork, in January.

WILLIE “Big Bang” CASEY claimed his place among the legends of Irish boxing in his hometown of Limerick on Saturday night when he sensationally stopped Paulie Hyland in four spectacular rounds to win the European super bantamweight title.

WILLIE ‘Big Bang’ Casey and Paul Hyland were primed for battle as they weighed in for tonight’s all-Ireland European title thriller at the University Arena in Limerick.

BARRY McGUIGAN wants the winner of Saturday night’s all-Irish European title fight between Willie Casey and Paul Hyland to give Carl Frampton a shot at the belt.

A rib injury has ruled Kiko Martinez out of his European title showdown with Willie “Big Bang” Casey on the Hunky Dorys Fight Night at the UL Arena on Saturday, November 6th.

WILLIE “Big Bang” Casey took his rivalry with newly-crowned European super bantamweight champion, Kiko Martinez, to a new level when they met face-to-face for the third time in the plush surroundings of the new Grand Canal Theatre in Dublin yesterday.

WILLIE CASEY will provide Kiko Martinez with an opportunity to explore the “Big Bang” theory when he challenges the Spaniard for his new European super bantamweight belt on what will be an historic night’s boxing at the University Sports Arena in Limerick on November 6.

WILLIE CASEY is first in line for a shot at the European super bantamweight title which Spaniard, Kiko Martinez, reclaimed with a points victory over Arsen Martirosyan at the National Stadium on Saturday night.

WITH two European titles, one Irish title and several reputations on the line, tonight’s mammoth nine-bout televised Hunky Dorys Fight Night at the National Stadium is overflowing with promise.

PAUL HYLAND could hardly be blamed if he has one eye on the European title fight involving teak tough little Spaniard Kiko Martinez and Arsen Martyrosian, an Armenian who has based himself in France, at The National Stadium on Saturday night.

WILLIE “BIG BANG” CASEY will not be the only boxer with bigger things on his mind at the CityWest Hotel tonight.

WILLIE “Big Bang” Casey says he is the one who’ll be gunning for Kiko Martinez once he takes care of business tomorrow night against Italian super bantamweight, Emiliano Salvini, at CityWest Hotel where Dolphil Promotions stage a 10-fight card with Limerick’s Prizefighter top of the bill.

KIKO MARTINEZ is all set to return to Dublin in a bid to reclaim the European super bantamweight title that he took from Bernard Dunne at the old Point three years ago, and he said yesterday that he is hoping his achievement in winning back the title will lure the Dubliner out of retirement for a return fight.

THE emphasis will be on the four Irish title fights on the bill, but Cork-based Cuban knockout sensation, Alexei Acosta, is sure to claim a fair share of the limelight when he steps up in class to box former world champion, Felix Machado, in a unique Latin-American duel on the Yanjing Fight Night at the National Stadium tomorrow night.

PAUL HYLAND is hoping Bernard Dunne will reclaim the world title so he can then be part of what would be a sensational world title fight between two Dubliners in their native city.

BRIAN PETERS revealed after Saturday night’s disaster at the O2 that he had suggested to Bernard Dunne that he might forfeit the WBA world super bantamweight title and go down another route rather than face the mandatory challenge of Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym.

Bernard Dunne was taken to Beaumont hospital last night following the loss of his WBA World Super Bantamweight title to Thailand's Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym, but was released with a clean bill of health shortly after.

Bernard Dunne has lost his World Super Bantam-weight title after his first defence at the O2 arena last night.

HE went to the gates of hell to win it and Bernard Dunne is not prepared to even consider relinquishing his WBA world super bantamweight belt in his first defence against Poonsawat Kratingdaenggym from Thailand when they touch gloves at the O2 on Dublin’s Dockside tonight.

Waterford hurlers drew on world champion Bernard Dunne’s experience in preparing for last Sunday’s All-Ireland SHC semi-final against Kilkenny.

WATERFORD hurlers drew on world champion Bernard Dunne’s experience in preparing for last Sunday’s All-Ireland SHC semi-final against Kilkenny.

WATERFORD hurlers have received a pre-championship boost from world champion boxer Bernard Dunne.