Inside Barry McGuigan’s feud with boxing superstar ex-pal Carl Frampton – and incredible TV clash that could have been

BARRY McGUIGAN has had plentifulness of battles successful the ring, successful his idiosyncratic beingness and present successful the jungle.

But determination was adjacent a bitter ineligible spat with his erstwhile protegee that ended up successful court.

And the brace astir had an awkward reunion connected the ITV screens this week.

Hall of Famer McGuigan, 63, won the WBA featherweight satellite crown successful 1985 and retired with an awesome 32-3 record.

After hanging up his gloves, the Irishman stayed successful boxing and launched his ain promotion company.

And 1 of the cardinal men successful his stables was Northern Irish prima Carl Frampton.

Frampton, 37, started moving with McGuigan successful 2009 and secured world titles successful some the super-bantamweight and featherweight divisions portion warring nether the Cyclone Promotions emblem and being trained by Barry’s lad Shane.

But things took a daze twist successful 2017.

Their eight-year narration ended successful acrimonious manner pursuing the cancellation of Frampton’s combat with Andres Gutierrez.

Not lone did the Jackal quit from the McGuigans but helium besides defected to arguable Irish gangster Daniel Kinahan’s MTK Global promotions.

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Kinahan is being hunted by the FBI implicit relation arsenic caput of a planetary organised transgression gang worthy an estimated $1billion (£790million) - determination are nary suggestions Frampton was progressive successful crime.

And Frampton’s exit besides sparked a wide exodus of boxers from Cyclone Promotions, “effectively destroying the business”.

Then successful 2020, the spat turned into a courtroom showdown.

Frampton sued Cyclone Promotions for £6m successful alleged withheld net from fights successful Northern Ireland, England and the United States.

He adjacent claimed the McGuigans utilized immoderate of the wealth helium was owed for expenses extracurricular of boxing - including holidays.

Frampton, who described mentor and manager McGuigan arsenic his “hero”, said: “It conscionable seemed astatine times they were enjoying beingness connected my purse.

“The biggest 1 was successful 2016 aft a fight. My household and I had a spot of a holiday, and the McGuigans did too.

“The expenses were coming retired of the purse aft the combat was over.

“I virtually paid for a batch of what went connected successful their holiday.

“It was hard erstwhile it broke down, to beryllium honest, but I mean, it was astir apt a agelong clip coming.

“I was hoping that the things that radical were saying astir Barry were each wrong. He was a leader of excavation increasing up.

“I wanted this to get fixed. A tribunal process was the past happening I wanted, but determination was nary different option.”

McGuigan deed back, though, and launched a countersuit claiming Frampton had been successful breach of his declaration erstwhile helium walked retired connected Cyclone Promotions, for whom helium was a director.

Both men denied immoderate wrongdoing.

However, it sparked a multi-million-pound ineligible lawsuit which was amazingly settled successful an out-of-court confidential statement successful November 2020.

McGuigan said: “Just a disappointment. Pretty heavy disappointment. I took him into my home, made him portion of my family.

“I didn’t instrumentality a penny disconnected him for implicit 2 years [until] helium won the Commonwealth title.

“Very disappointing that helium went disconnected to articulation Daniel Kinahan. That’s it.

“He [Frampton] tin accidental what helium wants but helium knows helium could not person achieved thing without maine oregon my household and the enactment that we enactment into him.

“I don’t privation to get into a slagging lucifer with him. I’m past each that nonsense.

Shane volition extremity up successful the International Boxing Hall of Fame, conscionable similar me. It sounds precise bumptious but I’m not successful the International Boxing Hall of Fame for nary reason.

“I was truly bully astatine what I did. We are precise bully people. We’re precise decent people.”

Frampton - who went connected to motion for promoter Frank Warren - retired successful 2021 and announced his narration with McGuigan is “dead” and the atrocious memories person “tarred everything that’s gone on”.

He released his autobiography successful 2023 and took further jabs astatine his erstwhile manager.

The Belfast battler added: "It was bliss astatine the commencement and determination was genuine emotion and friendship. Barry went arsenic acold arsenic calling maine the 4th lad astatine times. He was a antheral that I looked up to truthful much.

"I recognize that Barry is simply a leader to galore people. He was a leader to me.

“But if you work this book, and inactive deliberation helium is simply a hero, you request to springiness your caput a wobble.

“It was beauteous sour successful the end. It was a shame but this is what happens successful boxing.

"I deliberation the relationship's dead, it volition ever beryllium dead.

"But for a while, I had a batch of bitterness astir them and thought astir them a batch and I had a batch of anger, but I don't person that anymore. I benignant of pity them now.

"I've calmed down and person much important things to interest astir now.

“Obviously I can't accidental a lot, but I tin accidental I'm highly blessed with the settlement."

But contempt their nationalist animosity, Frampton and McGuigan could person spent 3 weeks camping together successful Australia aft Tommy Fury opted retired of I’m A Celebrity.

In a Kevin Keegan-style explanation, Frampton revealed: “I curse to God I was astir successful it.

“When Tommy Fury pulled retired determination was maine and 2 others and the fella from McFly got it alternatively of me.

“So evidently I deliberation determination indispensable person been a statement that would person enactment maine and McGuigan successful astatine the aforesaid time.

"By the mode I would person loved to person been successful with him, I would person perfectly loved it, but it wasn’t to be."