Leigh Wood defends world title in stunning comeback win against Josh Warrington

07 October 2023 , 22:04

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Leigh Wood celebrates after knocking out Josh Warrington in Sheffield

Leigh Wood pulled off a miraculous comeback against Josh Warrington to defend his featherweight world title in Sheffield.

Wood was making his third appearance of the year after his thrilling two-fight encounter against Mauricio Lara that saw him both lose and reclaim his world title. Warrington came into the battle of the North after a 10-month layoff following his shocking loss to Luis Alberto Lopez last December.

Both men started the fight quickly much to the joy of the Sheffield crowd as Warrington was finding a home for his left hook early on. Wood seemed to tighten up on his defence in the second round as he looked to pick his shots at range instead of going toe-to-toe with Warrington in the pocket.

Warrington had a good flurry at the start of the third stanza as he backed up Wood, whose legs looked momentarily unstable whilst he was against the ropes. Wood was being hit by some big hooks whilst struggling to land any shots of his own as Warrington continued to make the fight gritty.

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Leigh Wood vow to step towards Josh Warrington status with Mauricio Lara win

Wood was cut above the right eye and Warrington wasn’t slowing down in his onslaught as he staggered Wood with two jabs followed by a right hand. The world champion looked like a beaten man come the midway point of the fight, but Warrington was then deducted a point for punches to the back of the head.

Just as the seventh round was coming to a close, Wood landed a right hook and followed up with a combination that put Warrington down. 'The Leeds Warrior' got back to his feet but was on shaky legs as the referee waved the fight off as Wood defended his world title.

Leigh Wood knocked out Josh Warrington in the seventh round

"We got the knockout in the end and I’m one fight away from my fairytale ending. Josh is a great fighter, thanks to all the fans for turning out tonight. I knew the further the fight went on the sloppier he would get. As soon as I got back to the gameplay, the opportunities came straight away," Wood said.

Warrington felt he was able to continue and protested the stoppage as he said: “He caught me with a good shot but I felt good. I was listening to the count, but he waved his arms. I’m a bit disappointed and I feel let down. I switched off for a split second. I’ve been out the ring for 10 months and I felt like at times I was coming back into it."

Harry Davies