Mauricio Lara, the current WBA featherweight champion, is set to defend his title against Leigh Wood in a rematch fight at the AO Arena in Manchester, England on May 27th. Eddie Hearn, the promoter of the fight, sees the upcoming match as a “50-50 fight.” He believes that although Leigh Wood lost to Lara in their last fight, he has a chance to win because he gave Mauricio trouble before the bout’s seventh round.
Many boxing fans, however, see Lara as the clear favourite. The 25-year-old is more talented, younger, and stronger than his 34-year-old opponent, Leigh Wood. Although Wood showed an impressive performance against Michael Conlan in March last year, many fans believe that he has hit his ceiling and will retire after the fight with Lara. Some even think that it’s best for Wood to fight Conlan again rather than facing a massacre at the hands of Lara.
During the last fight, Lara started strong and had Wood hurt in the first two rounds. However, he backed off for the next four rounds before coming alive in the seventh round to knock Wood down with a powerful left hook. Wood’s trainer Ben Davison wisely threw in the towel after seeing the physical state his fighter was in.
Is this the last chance for Leigh Wood?
Eddie Hearn said that this fight might be Wood’s last chance to prove himself. If he loses, Hearn thinks Wood might get the opportunity to fight Josh Warrington, as he is making big money and wants to remain in world-level fights. Hearn considers it a very dangerous fight for Wood, but there’s something inside him that makes the promoter think he might win.
Mauricio Lara will start faster
Hearn expects Lara to come to the fight with a fast start and hope to end the fight early while knowing about Wood’s power. He also anticipates a blood bath fight and considers it a 50-50 fight with a lot at stake for both fighters.