Leigh Wood plans to give his hometown fans a short, but pleasant night when he meet
One thing British fans learned when Mauricio Lara upset Josh Warrington in 2021 is the Mexican knows only one way to fight: moving forward.
And that’s OK with featherweight champion Leigh Wood, who will defend his belt against Lara on Saturday in his hometown of Nottingham. Wood, coming off his sensational final-round knockout of Michael Conlan in the 2022 Fight of the Year, said he’ll be happy to beat Lara at his own game.
He’s predicting an early night for the challenger.
“He doesn’t have to come looking for me, I’m going to be right in front of him,” Wood said on Tuesday. “I’ll meet him in the middle of the ring. When he walks into the ring, he’s going to be met with a very hostile crowd.
“No one is going to walk into Nottingham and walk through me. It’s not going to happen. I can’t see it reaching the halfway point, and I will win by knockout.”
Wood (26-2, 16 KOs) and Lara (25-2-1, 18 KOs) were supposed to have met last September but Wood suffered a biceps injury, which forced postponement.
Lara reportedly implied that Wood was merely trying to get out of the fight and suggested that his impressive victory over Warrington – a ninth-round knockout – made him a bogeyman in the U.K.
That only made Wood more determined to get the fight done. And it motivates him.
“There was never going to be another fight,” he said. “It was always going to be Mauricio Lara next. He’s said a few things which made it quite personal. He said that I faked my injury and he said that all the English are running away scared.”
Wood had to admit that Lara looked good in the Warrington fight, which took place in London. The Leeds fighter was unbeaten and a rising star at the time. And, in the end, Lara beat him up. Their rematch ended in a technical draw when Lara was cut.
At the same time, Wood said Lara has flaws he plans to exploit.
“From the outside looking in he looks very dangerous,” he said. “He got that devastating win over Josh Warrington. There’s a lot of things he does well and he is dangerous, but in the same hand there’s a lot of things that he does very poorly.
“You can’t get away with that at this level with the right fighter.”
And, again, Wood also will have his not-so-secret weapon: the crowd.
“The people down at the ground have really got behind me my past few fights,” he said. “It’s going to be a special atmosphere this fight. It’s going to be even better. Last time (for the Conlan fight) it was split with the Nottingham lot and the Irish.
“This time it’s predominantly going to be the Nottingham fans. They’ll be singing and making lots of noise. It’s going to be lifting.”
Leigh Wood plans to give his hometown fans a short, but pleasant night when he meet
One thing British fans learned when Mauricio Lara upset Josh Warrington in 2021 is the Mexican knows only one way to fight: moving forward.
And that’s OK with featherweight champion Leigh Wood, who will defend his belt against Lara on Saturday in his hometown of Nottingham. Wood, coming off his sensational final-round knockout of Michael Conlan in the 2022 Fight of the Year, said he’ll be happy to beat Lara at his own game.
He’s predicting an early night for the challenger.
“He doesn’t have to come looking for me, I’m going to be right in front of him,” Wood said on Tuesday. “I’ll meet him in the middle of the ring. When he walks into the ring, he’s going to be met with a very hostile crowd.
“No one is going to walk into Nottingham and walk through me. It’s not going to happen. I can’t see it reaching the halfway point, and I will win by knockout.”
Wood (26-2, 16 KOs) and Lara (25-2-1, 18 KOs) were supposed to have met last September but Wood suffered a biceps injury, which forced postponement.
Lara reportedly implied that Wood was merely trying to get out of the fight and suggested that his impressive victory over Warrington – a ninth-round knockout – made him a bogeyman in the U.K.
That only made Wood more determined to get the fight done. And it motivates him.
“There was never going to be another fight,” he said. “It was always going to be Mauricio Lara next. He’s said a few things which made it quite personal. He said that I faked my injury and he said that all the English are running away scared.”
Wood had to admit that Lara looked good in the Warrington fight, which took place in London. The Leeds fighter was unbeaten and a rising star at the time. And, in the end, Lara beat him up. Their rematch ended in a technical draw when Lara was cut.
At the same time, Wood said Lara has flaws he plans to exploit.
“From the outside looking in he looks very dangerous,” he said. “He got that devastating win over Josh Warrington. There’s a lot of things he does well and he is dangerous, but in the same hand there’s a lot of things that he does very poorly.
“You can’t get away with that at this level with the right fighter.”
And, again, Wood also will have his not-so-secret weapon: the crowd.
“The people down at the ground have really got behind me my past few fights,” he said. “It’s going to be a special atmosphere this fight. It’s going to be even better. Last time (for the Conlan fight) it was split with the Nottingham lot and the Irish.
“This time it’s predominantly going to be the Nottingham fans. They’ll be singing and making lots of noise. It’s going to be lifting.”
Time: 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
Where: Stormont Vail Events Center, Topeka, Kansas
TV/Stream: Showtime
Division: Junior middleweights (154 pounds)
At stake: No major titles
Pound-for-pound ranking: None
Odds: NA
Also on the card: Misael Lopez vs. Edward Vazquez, junior lightweights
Prediction: Holmes UD
Background: Two American junior middleweight prospects will risk their perfect records against one another in a main event on “ShoBox: The New Generation”. Holmes, a 2016 Olympic Alternate, is coming off a unanimous decision over Vernon Brown in his first 10-rounder on ShoBox last March. The product of Flint, Michigan, is an unusually tall (6-foot-2) southpaw with excellent skills that were honed during his successful amateur career, which is why he appears to have a high ceiling. The aggressive Villarreal last fought in July, when he stopped LeShawn Rodriguez in six rounds. It was the Bronx native’s fifth consecutive knockout. He’s much shorter than Holmes (5-foot-8) but he also had a good amateur career, meaning he has a solid skill set to go with his punching power.
Time: 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT (7 p.m. U.K. time) (main event later in show)
Where: Nottingham Arena, Nottingham, England
TV/Stream: DAZN
Division: Featherweights (126 pounds)
At stake: Wood’s WBA title
Pound-for-pound ranking: None
Odds: Wood 2-1 favorite (average of multiple outlets)
Also on the card: Dalton Smith vs. Billy Allington, junior welterweights; Gary Cully vs. Wilfredo Flores, lightweights; Cheavon Clarke vs. Dec Spelman, cruiserweights; Gamal Yafai vs. Diego Alberto Ruiz, junior featherweights
Prediction: Lara KO 9
Background: One of the hottest fighters from the U.K. will face a Mexican brawler who has a history of spoiling the plans of Britons. Wood is coming off the 2022 Fight of the Year, in which he got up from a first round knockdown to knock challenger Michael Conlan through the ropes and out in the final round last March. The boxer-puncher, who will be fighting in his hometown, has won three consecutive fights since he lost a majority decision to James Dickens in 2020. That includes a 12th-round stoppage of Can Xu to win his belt in 2021. Lara, a 24-year-old from Mexico City, stunned U.K. fans when he knocked out then-unbeaten and rising star Josh Warrington in the ninth round in London in 2021. The rematch later that year ended in a two-round technical draw after Lara suffered a cut and couldn’t continue. Lara then knocked out both Emilio Sanchez and Jose Sammartin in three rounds to earn another shot at a top British fighter.
LUIS NERY (33-1, 25 KOs) VS. AZAT HOVHANNISYAN (21-3, 17 KOs)
When: Saturday, Feb. 18
Time: 6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
Where: Fox Theater, Pomona, California
TV/Stream: DAZN
Division: Featherweights (126 pounds)
At stake: No major titles
Pound-for-pound ranking: None
Odds: NA
Also on the card: Shane Mosley Jr. vs. Mario Lozano, super middleweights
Prediction: Hovhannisyan KO 10
Background: Junior featherweight contenders Nery and Hovhannisyan bring offense-minded attitudes and impressive punching power into this main event. Nery, a former two-division titleholder from Mexico, is still rebuilding after a rough stretch in 2021 and last year, when he was stopped by a bigger, stronger Brandon Figueroa in seven rounds in a 122-pound title-unification bout and then defeated Carlos Castro by an unconvincing split decision. He’s coming off a third-round knockout of less threatening David Carmona in a 130-pound, stay-busy fight last October. Hovhannisyan, a Los Angeles-based Armenian, has won seven consecutive fights since he lost a unanimous decision to then-122-pound titleholder Rey Vargas in 2018 and has rarely failed to entertain the fans. He last fought in April of last year, when he knocked out Dagoberto Aguero in two rounds on the Ryan Garcia-Emmanuel Tagoe card.
ALSO FIGHTING THIS WEEK
THURSDAY
Juan Avila vs. Andres Gerardo, lightweights, Costa Mesa, California (FITE).
SATURDAY
Felix Sturm vs. Sukru Altay, super middleweights, Stuttgart, Germany (DAZN).
Mike Ohan Jr. vs. Daniel Sostre, welterweights, Melrose, Massachusetts (BXNGTV).
Time: 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
Where: Stormont Vail Events Center, Topeka, Kansas
TV/Stream: Showtime
Division: Junior middleweights (154 pounds)
At stake: No major titles
Pound-for-pound ranking: None
Odds: NA
Also on the card: Misael Lopez vs. Edward Vazquez, junior lightweights
Prediction: Holmes UD
Background: Two American junior middleweight prospects will risk their perfect records against one another in a main event on “ShoBox: The New Generation”. Holmes, a 2016 Olympic Alternate, is coming off a unanimous decision over Vernon Brown in his first 10-rounder on ShoBox last March. The product of Flint, Michigan, is an unusually tall (6-foot-2) southpaw with excellent skills that were honed during his successful amateur career, which is why he appears to have a high ceiling. The aggressive Villarreal last fought in July, when he stopped LeShawn Rodriguez in six rounds. It was the Bronx native’s fifth consecutive knockout. He’s much shorter than Holmes (5-foot-8) but he also had a good amateur career, meaning he has a solid skill set to go with his punching power.
Time: 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT (7 p.m. U.K. time) (main event later in show)
Where: Nottingham Arena, Nottingham, England
TV/Stream: DAZN
Division: Featherweights (126 pounds)
At stake: Wood’s WBA title
Pound-for-pound ranking: None
Odds: Wood 2-1 favorite (average of multiple outlets)
Also on the card: Dalton Smith vs. Billy Allington, junior welterweights; Gary Cully vs. Wilfredo Flores, lightweights; Cheavon Clarke vs. Dec Spelman, cruiserweights; Gamal Yafai vs. Diego Alberto Ruiz, junior featherweights
Prediction: Lara KO 9
Background: One of the hottest fighters from the U.K. will face a Mexican brawler who has a history of spoiling the plans of Britons. Wood is coming off the 2022 Fight of the Year, in which he got up from a first round knockdown to knock challenger Michael Conlan through the ropes and out in the final round last March. The boxer-puncher, who will be fighting in his hometown, has won three consecutive fights since he lost a majority decision to James Dickens in 2020. That includes a 12th-round stoppage of Can Xu to win his belt in 2021. Lara, a 24-year-old from Mexico City, stunned U.K. fans when he knocked out then-unbeaten and rising star Josh Warrington in the ninth round in London in 2021. The rematch later that year ended in a two-round technical draw after Lara suffered a cut and couldn’t continue. Lara then knocked out both Emilio Sanchez and Jose Sammartin in three rounds to earn another shot at a top British fighter.
LUIS NERY (33-1, 25 KOs) VS. AZAT HOVHANNISYAN (21-3, 17 KOs)
When: Saturday, Feb. 18
Time: 6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT (main event later in show)
Where: Fox Theater, Pomona, California
TV/Stream: DAZN
Division: Featherweights (126 pounds)
At stake: No major titles
Pound-for-pound ranking: None
Odds: NA
Also on the card: Shane Mosley Jr. vs. Mario Lozano, super middleweights
Prediction: Hovhannisyan KO 10
Background: Junior featherweight contenders Nery and Hovhannisyan bring offense-minded attitudes and impressive punching power into this main event. Nery, a former two-division titleholder from Mexico, is still rebuilding after a rough stretch in 2021 and last year, when he was stopped by a bigger, stronger Brandon Figueroa in seven rounds in a 122-pound title-unification bout and then defeated Carlos Castro by an unconvincing split decision. He’s coming off a third-round knockout of less threatening David Carmona in a 130-pound, stay-busy fight last October. Hovhannisyan, a Los Angeles-based Armenian, has won seven consecutive fights since he lost a unanimous decision to then-122-pound titleholder Rey Vargas in 2018 and has rarely failed to entertain the fans. He last fought in April of last year, when he knocked out Dagoberto Aguero in two rounds on the Ryan Garcia-Emmanuel Tagoe card.
ALSO FIGHTING THIS WEEK
THURSDAY
Juan Avila vs. Andres Gerardo, lightweights, Costa Mesa, California (FITE).
SATURDAY
Felix Sturm vs. Sukru Altay, super middleweights, Stuttgart, Germany (DAZN).
Mike Ohan Jr. vs. Daniel Sostre, welterweights, Melrose, Massachusetts (BXNGTV).
Josh Warrington vows to bounce back with victory over Kiko Martinez on Saturday.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published at DAZN.com on Feb. 3.
Anyone walking through Leeds city center last week may have heard the sound of someone banging a table. If they did, it wasn’t their mind playing tricks on them, it was the Leeds Warrior Josh Warrington making the noise and chanting the name of the IBF world featherweight champion Kiko Martinez.
The pair met face to face for the first time at a press conference since their rematch on March 26 was announced by Matchroom as the final part of DAZN’s stacked first quarter schedule.
This was a fight which came out of the blue for British fans. Martinez (43-10-2, 30 KOs) produced one of the upsets of 2021 after his sixth round knockout win against Kid Galahad to claim the IBF belt and it’s alleged that the Spaniard was calling out Warrington (30-1-1, 7 KOs) as soon as he was back inside the dressing rooms in Sheffield.
Martinez faced Warrington at the First Direct Arena five years ago in what turned out to be a forgettable contest. Warrington triumphed on points, but it seems as if Martinez has never been able to come to terms with what happened on the night.
Warrington was asked whether he’s already inside Martinez’s head.
“I guess I must be. It’s funny because he was going to be a sparring partner last year before the Mauricio Lara fight. We were going to pay for him to come over,” Warrington told DAZN News.
“After the fight, I heard he was saying my name in the changing rooms, he’s desperate for the fight. So that’s something he wants to put to bed, now he’s got an opportunity to do it.
“He ain’t knocking me out, simple as that. I got knocked out against Mauricio Lara, but I took five rounds of clean shots before I got knocked out. Kiko can bang, but he’s not doing a one-punch knockout to me like he did against Kid Galahad.”
2021 was a year of frustration for Warrington. He was set for a huge featherweight showdown with then-WBA champion Xu Can last summer, but myriad issues stopped the Leeds man’s date with destiny becoming a reality.
First came the decision to relinquish his IBF featherweight title after the governing body failed to approve the request for a unification and instead insisted that Warrington face mandatory challenger Kid Galahad for a second time.
Then came the first fight with Lara last February. After a year of inactivity because of COVID-19, Warrington was hoping Lara would be a simple tune-up fight before a clash with Xu Can outdoors the following summer. Instead, Warrington was battered from pillar to post by Lara before referee Howard Foster stepped in to stop the contest in the ninth round at SSE Arena.
Returning home to Yorkshire the following morning, it was back to the drawing board for Warrington, who had suffered the first professional loss of his career.
With no world title opportunity on the horizon, the only option for Warrington was to face Lara for a second time in a quest for redemption, but this time he would be backed by his loyal arm of fans at Headingley’s rugby league stadium in Leeds.
The date was set, Sept. 4. This would hopefully be the night Warrington re-asserted himself onto the world stage. But once again it was a false start in what was one of the first British boxing shows to host a capacity crowd. During a pulsating opening two rounds, a clash of heads between the combatants resulted in the Mexican suffering a deep cut, which resulted in a no-contest.
When reflecting on the past year with DAZN News, the 31-year-old said he was just about to hit his stride in his second fight with Lara. And while it was a frustrating 2021, Warrington is ready to do whatever it takes to become a two-time world champion.
“Yeah, the Lara fight, the first one, was bad, getting knocked out. The second one, I think, I was warming into it. We had an idea about what we wanted to do,” Warrington said. “There’s gameplans in boxing. Like, for instance, when I boxed Carl Frampton, I had to start really fast so the first two rounds were really exciting.
“These two were just about finding myself in the first few rounds mentally and show a bit of boxing skill. I did that. I thought the gameplan was going to come off lovely, but I never got the opportunity to do so. So frustrating, yeah, but what an opportunity I’ve got now to become a two-time world champion.”
When it comes to whether Martinez would change his strategy after seeing Warrington get stopped in the first Lara fight, Warrington made it clear he will focus on his own gameplan and adapt to whatever is thrown at him next month.
“I don’t think he’s going to turn up March 26th and start dancing round the ring with his hands down,” Warrington said. “What he brings is ferocious pace, he’s energetic and he throws lots of punches. I guarantee he’ll do the same, and he probably thinks he can knock me out as well.
“He’s seen me be put on the canvas so he probably thinks I’m susceptible, but we’ll be ready for whatever he brings.”
If Warrington becomes a two-time world champion, he is keeping his options open as to what would come next.
“Whatever opportunity presents itself,” Warrington responded when asked about his future in the professional ranks. “I’d love to tick that box for a unification, then I can just bow out and fight Lara, finish that and ride off into the sunset.”
Josh Warrington vows to bounce back with victory over Kiko Martinez on Saturday.
Editor’s note: This article was originally published at DAZN.com on Feb. 3.
Anyone walking through Leeds city center last week may have heard the sound of someone banging a table. If they did, it wasn’t their mind playing tricks on them, it was the Leeds Warrior Josh Warrington making the noise and chanting the name of the IBF world featherweight champion Kiko Martinez.
The pair met face to face for the first time at a press conference since their rematch on March 26 was announced by Matchroom as the final part of DAZN’s stacked first quarter schedule.
This was a fight which came out of the blue for British fans. Martinez (43-10-2, 30 KOs) produced one of the upsets of 2021 after his sixth round knockout win against Kid Galahad to claim the IBF belt and it’s alleged that the Spaniard was calling out Warrington (30-1-1, 7 KOs) as soon as he was back inside the dressing rooms in Sheffield.
Martinez faced Warrington at the First Direct Arena five years ago in what turned out to be a forgettable contest. Warrington triumphed on points, but it seems as if Martinez has never been able to come to terms with what happened on the night.
Warrington was asked whether he’s already inside Martinez’s head.
“I guess I must be. It’s funny because he was going to be a sparring partner last year before the Mauricio Lara fight. We were going to pay for him to come over,” Warrington told DAZN News.
“After the fight, I heard he was saying my name in the changing rooms, he’s desperate for the fight. So that’s something he wants to put to bed, now he’s got an opportunity to do it.
“He ain’t knocking me out, simple as that. I got knocked out against Mauricio Lara, but I took five rounds of clean shots before I got knocked out. Kiko can bang, but he’s not doing a one-punch knockout to me like he did against Kid Galahad.”
2021 was a year of frustration for Warrington. He was set for a huge featherweight showdown with then-WBA champion Xu Can last summer, but myriad issues stopped the Leeds man’s date with destiny becoming a reality.
First came the decision to relinquish his IBF featherweight title after the governing body failed to approve the request for a unification and instead insisted that Warrington face mandatory challenger Kid Galahad for a second time.
Then came the first fight with Lara last February. After a year of inactivity because of COVID-19, Warrington was hoping Lara would be a simple tune-up fight before a clash with Xu Can outdoors the following summer. Instead, Warrington was battered from pillar to post by Lara before referee Howard Foster stepped in to stop the contest in the ninth round at SSE Arena.
Returning home to Yorkshire the following morning, it was back to the drawing board for Warrington, who had suffered the first professional loss of his career.
With no world title opportunity on the horizon, the only option for Warrington was to face Lara for a second time in a quest for redemption, but this time he would be backed by his loyal arm of fans at Headingley’s rugby league stadium in Leeds.
The date was set, Sept. 4. This would hopefully be the night Warrington re-asserted himself onto the world stage. But once again it was a false start in what was one of the first British boxing shows to host a capacity crowd. During a pulsating opening two rounds, a clash of heads between the combatants resulted in the Mexican suffering a deep cut, which resulted in a no-contest.
When reflecting on the past year with DAZN News, the 31-year-old said he was just about to hit his stride in his second fight with Lara. And while it was a frustrating 2021, Warrington is ready to do whatever it takes to become a two-time world champion.
“Yeah, the Lara fight, the first one, was bad, getting knocked out. The second one, I think, I was warming into it. We had an idea about what we wanted to do,” Warrington said. “There’s gameplans in boxing. Like, for instance, when I boxed Carl Frampton, I had to start really fast so the first two rounds were really exciting.
“These two were just about finding myself in the first few rounds mentally and show a bit of boxing skill. I did that. I thought the gameplan was going to come off lovely, but I never got the opportunity to do so. So frustrating, yeah, but what an opportunity I’ve got now to become a two-time world champion.”
When it comes to whether Martinez would change his strategy after seeing Warrington get stopped in the first Lara fight, Warrington made it clear he will focus on his own gameplan and adapt to whatever is thrown at him next month.
“I don’t think he’s going to turn up March 26th and start dancing round the ring with his hands down,” Warrington said. “What he brings is ferocious pace, he’s energetic and he throws lots of punches. I guarantee he’ll do the same, and he probably thinks he can knock me out as well.
“He’s seen me be put on the canvas so he probably thinks I’m susceptible, but we’ll be ready for whatever he brings.”
If Warrington becomes a two-time world champion, he is keeping his options open as to what would come next.
“Whatever opportunity presents itself,” Warrington responded when asked about his future in the professional ranks. “I’d love to tick that box for a unification, then I can just bow out and fight Lara, finish that and ride off into the sunset.”
The rematch between Mauricio Lara and Josh Warrington was declared a technical draw after two rounds because of a bad cut above Lara’s eye.
Expect a third fight between Mauricio Lara and Josh Warrington.
The featherweight contenders were engaged in a spirited rematch when a clash of heads in Round 2 caused a deep cut above Lara’s left eye, which ended the fight after the round Saturday in Leeds, England.
Because the fight didn’t go four rounds, it was declared a technical draw.
The premature ending was bitterly disappointing for the fighters and the fans in attendance in Warrington’s hometown, who were hoping he’d avenge Lara’s knockout victory in the first fight.
Warrington (30-1-1, 7 KOs) fought in a defensive posture from the opening bell, obviously trying to limit his power-punching opponent’s ability to land big shots.
At the same time, Warrington wasn’t afraid to throw hard punches himself, many of which landed.
True to form, Lara (23-2-1, 16 KOs) fought aggressively in an attempt to land blows that would allow him to repeat his performance of their first fight in February. And he landed some eye-catching shots, including a number to the body.
The intensity five minutes into the fight was palpable, particularly with the large crowd at Headingly Stadium.
Then, with about 30 seconds remaining, the fighters’ heads collided. Referee Steve Gray stopped the fight momentarily and then allowed it allowed to continue.
However, between Rounds 2 and 3, the ring doctor decided the cut was too severe and ordered the fight stopped.
Warrington, on a mission to right what he felt was a wrong, was devastated afterward.
“I’m absolutely gutted, absolutely gutted,” he said. “… These things happen.”
Eddie Hearn, who promotes Warrington, said that he expects a third bout between his fighter and Lara will take place but not until next year.
He said Warrington, whose training camp was largely wasted, could fight someone else in the meantime.
Warrington definitely wants one more crack at Lara, though.
“I keep saying it,” he said, “I need to get the slate cleaned.”
The rematch between Mauricio Lara and Josh Warrington was declared a technical draw after two rounds because of a bad cut above Lara’s eye.
Expect a third fight between Mauricio Lara and Josh Warrington.
The featherweight contenders were engaged in a spirited rematch when a clash of heads in Round 2 caused a deep cut above Lara’s left eye, which ended the fight after the round Saturday in Leeds, England.
Because the fight didn’t go four rounds, it was declared a technical draw.
The premature ending was bitterly disappointing for the fighters and the fans in attendance in Warrington’s hometown, who were hoping he’d avenge Lara’s knockout victory in the first fight.
Warrington (30-1-1, 7 KOs) fought in a defensive posture from the opening bell, obviously trying to limit his power-punching opponent’s ability to land big shots.
At the same time, Warrington wasn’t afraid to throw hard punches himself, many of which landed.
True to form, Lara (23-2-1, 16 KOs) fought aggressively in an attempt to land blows that would allow him to repeat his performance of their first fight in February. And he landed some eye-catching shots, including a number to the body.
The intensity five minutes into the fight was palpable, particularly with the large crowd at Headingly Stadium.
Then, with about 30 seconds remaining, the fighters’ heads collided. Referee Steve Gray stopped the fight momentarily and then allowed it allowed to continue.
However, between Rounds 2 and 3, the ring doctor decided the cut was too severe and ordered the fight stopped.
Warrington, on a mission to right what he felt was a wrong, was devastated afterward.
“I’m absolutely gutted, absolutely gutted,” he said. “… These things happen.”
Eddie Hearn, who promotes Warrington, said that he expects a third bout between his fighter and Lara will take place but not until next year.
He said Warrington, whose training camp was largely wasted, could fight someone else in the meantime.
Warrington definitely wants one more crack at Lara, though.
“I keep saying it,” he said, “I need to get the slate cleaned.”
Katie Taylor defeated Jennifer Han by a shutout decision on the Josh Warrington-Maurico Lara card Saturday in Leeds, England.
Bring on Amanda Serrano?
Jennifer Han was no match in her fight against Katie Taylor on the Josh Warrington-Mauricio Lara card Saturday in Leeds, England, which Taylor won by a shutout decision.
Thus, Taylor once again retains her lightweight championship and looks ahead to bigger fights.
That could mean a showdown with fellow pound-for-pounder Serrano, a seven-division titleholder who currently holds a featherweight belt.
Han (18-4-1, 1 KO) is a former 126-pound champ who moved up to 135 in her previous fight. However, it was the ability and speed of Taylor (19-0, 6 KOs) that seemed to trouble Han more than any size disadvantage.
Taylor seemed to be a step ahead of Han the entire fight, beating her to the punch and landed many more eye-catching blows than the fighter from El Paso, Texas, who wasn’t active enough to win rounds.
Han was never hurt by her Irish opponent but she went down after a flurry of punches in Round 8.
Of course, that didn’t matter much on the cards. All three judges had the same score, 100-89 in Taylor’s favor. Boxing Junkie scored it 99-90 for Taylor.
She would’ve liked to score a knockout but she said Han, a capable boxer, made that difficult.
“She was very good at surviving,” Taylor said. “She’s very crafty, very slippery.
Taylor then moved on to the future. She could face Serrano, who easily outpointed Yamileth Mercado last weekend. Another option is to move up to 147 pounds and take on Jessica McCaskill.
Taylor isn’t picky.
“I’m willing to fight anyone at any weight,” she said. “I want the big fights.’
