Leigh Wood Vs Josh Warrington Rematch Agreed ‘In Principle’, Says Eddie Hearn
Negotiations are underway for a rematch between British featherweight rivals Leigh Wood and Josh Warrington, promoter Eddie Hearn has said.
Neither Wood (28-3-0 17 KO) nor Warrington (31-3-1 8 KO) have fought since their thrilling yet contentious WBA featherweight world title bout in October last year when Wood was awarded a seventh-round stoppage victory.
On that occasion at the Sheffield Arena in England, Warrington dominated the first six rounds, but a flush right hook and powerful combination from Wood sent the Leeds native to the canvas. He rose on unsteady legs and made his way to his corner for the standing eight count, but referee Michael Alexander waved off the fight, much to the indignation of Warrington and his team.
Given the excitement of the bout and its controversial conclusion, the demand for a rematch from the fans has always been there. That the animosity between Wood and Warrington has increased in the months since only adds another compelling reason to get this bout signed, sealed, and delivered.
Rematch Aimed For August
However, until now negotiations had been at an impasse. Wood relinquished the belt to focus on a move up to super-featherweight and Warrington said he would be following his rival to 130.
That would suggest that both fighters will make their super-featherweight debuts against each other, although Hearn did not reveal in which division their bout will be held.
“We are currently in negotiations for Josh Warrington against Leigh Wood II,” Warrington’s promoter Hearn said. “Leigh has had an injury. We wanted to make the fight in July; we’re now trying to make the fight for the end of August. He’s talking to [trainer] Ben Davison, seeing if he’s going to be ready for then.
“Hopefully it lands in August, but that’s the fight we want to make. I believe we have a deal in principle now with Leigh Wood; we know we’ve got one with [Warrington]. It’s one of the biggest fights in British boxing. Boxing’s flying and we want to make it happen. News soon.”
Warrington Keen On Cacace
Warrington, a two-time IBF featherweight world champion, told BoxingScene that his priority is to get revenge on Wood in a rematch, but he is also looking further afield at the rest of the 130lbs division.
Super-featherweight crowned a new world champion last weekend when Anthony Cacace stunned Joe Cordina with an eighth-round stoppage to win the IBF title on the undercard of Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury’s undisputed heavyweight bout.
“I’d fight Cacace, no problem,” Warrington said. “He pulled out a great performance, didn’t he? The opportunity was there, and he bit down on his gumshield, showed a lot of grit, a lot of determination and a lot of fitness, and got it done. I’d lick my lips for that one.”
Warrington is not yet ranked inside the top 15 at super-featherweight by any of the four governing bodies, but should he exact revenge on Wood – who is in the top 10 – then it would shoot him up the division’s standings and get him close to a title shot in the near future.
