Leo Santa Cruz, left, and Carl Frampton pose here on the observation deck of the Empire State building in Manhattan. They will fight Saturday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn/Photo courtesy of Amanda Westcott, Showtime
Leo Santa Cruz of Lincoln Heights was in a good mood Tuesday. One reason was because he and Carl Frampton were able to spend some time on the observation deck of the Empire State building in Manhattan. The biggest reason was because Santa Cruz’s ailing father – Jose Santa Cruz – will be in his corner Saturday when Santa Cruz (32-0-1, 18 KOs) defends his featherweight belt against Northern Ireland’s Frampton (22-0, 14 KOs) at Barclays Center in Brooklyn (on Showtime).
The elder Santa Cruz helps train his son along with his other son, lead trainer Antonio Santa Cruz. Jose Santa Cruz has been battling spinal cancer and although he has been improving, there was still a question as to whether he was going to be able to make the cross-country trip to New York City.