Leo Santa Cruz vs. Carl Frampton: Live Round-by-Round Results and Highlights

Carl Frampton outslugged Leo Santa Cruz to hand him his first defeat via majority decision and capture the WBA Featherweight Championship in front of a wild pro-Irish crowd on Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

The official judges favored the Irish star by tallies of 117-111 and 116-112, while the third judge had a 114-114 draw.

Bleacher Report’s unofficial ringside scorecard had Frampton the winner by a 115-113 score.

Frampton (23-0, 14 KO) looked stronger in his first fight at 126 pounds and was able to neutralize Santa Cruz’s vaunted pressure style for large segments of the fight. He buzzed the Mexican star in the second round and refused to be bullied around the ring.

Santa Cruz (32-1-1, 18 KO) took a few rounds to adapt to his foe’s attack, which seemed to catch him off guard. He wasn’t nearly as active as we’ve seen him in the past, largely because Frampton was able to raise the costs.

The Mexican sensation was able to rally back from a tough start, but it wasn't enough to snag the verdict in an exciting fight that seems destined for a rematch somewhere down the road.

In the co-featured bout, former featherweight champion Mikey Garcia returned from a two-plus year layoff to impressively stop fellow former titlist Elio Rojas in the fifth round of an action-packed fight.

Garcia (35-0, 29 KO) showed considerable ring rust in the first couple of rounds before he was able to get his legs under him and close the distance on his tricky foe. Once he got into range his considerable edge in skill and power became the story of the fight.

He dropped Rojas four times en route to the stoppage.