Leigh Wood’s reign as WBA featherweight champion is over after the Briton lost in devastating fashion to hard-hitting Mauricio Lara in Nottingham. <\/span><\/p>\n The 34-year-old seemed to be in control of the fight and was landing with ease through rounds three to six, before Lara unleashed a sensational left hook in the seventh. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n Wood hit the canvas and bravely got back to his feet. <\/span><\/p>\n But clearly hurt, his trainer Ben Davison threw in the towel. <\/span><\/p>\n The defeat is Wood’s third in a 29-fight career, while Mexican Lara has won his maiden world title. <\/span><\/p>\n “Congratulations to Mauricio Lara, he’s great fighter,” Wood told DAZN. “I made a mistake and paid for it.”<\/span><\/p>\n Promoter Eddie Hearn said Wood – who was up on all three judges’ scorecards at the time of the stoppage – now plans to activate his rematch clause.<\/span><\/p>\n “Firstly, well done to Leigh Wood for taking a fight like this – everyone knows how dangerous Mauricio Lara is,” Hearn said. <\/span><\/p>\n “I thought Leigh was cruising that fight, won four rounds on the spin, but Mauricio Lara came with a left hook from the heavens.” <\/span><\/p>\n A fight widely expected to be a shootout between arguably two of the biggest punchers of the division did not disappoint. <\/span><\/p>\n The atmosphere and volume moved up a notch as Wood made his entrance, with almost every fan in the arena on their feet. Lara – dressed in red and wearing a sombrero – was unfazed. <\/span><\/p>\n Wood channelled that support in the opening round to connect with a looping left and straight right, but was cut above the left eye after an accidental clash of heads. <\/span><\/p>\n The champion started strongly in the second, connecting to Lara’s body and following it up with an uppercut, but it seemed to spur Lara on and he launched a ferocious attack towards the end of the round. <\/span><\/p>\n Relentless punching to the head and body had Wood – with blood dripping down the side of his face – wincing. <\/span><\/p>\n But Wood recovered brilliantly to land a terrific straight right in the third, and followed it up with more single shots which pierced Lara’s guard. The fight was delivering on all expectations. <\/span><\/p>\n With Lara’s unconventional style – punching from angles with a straight-on stance and leaving himself open – Leigh started to land more frequently in the fourth. <\/span><\/p>\n Lara nodded and smiled after taking a body shot from Wood in the fifth – perhaps a sign he was hurt and which way this fight was heading. <\/span><\/p>\n Wood got a real foothold in the sixth as a desperate Lara started to get more reckless and was missing wildly. <\/span><\/p>\n Lara was going to be a danger at any time in the fight, however, and he stunned the East Midlands crowd with a fantastic short left hook to end Wood’s night. <\/span><\/p>\n With Wood unsteady on his legs, Davison saved his fighter from any more damage. <\/span><\/p>\n With so much emphasis nowadays put on protecting an unbeaten record, Wood has bounced back from defeats before and should be applauded for taking on a feared puncher in Lara as a voluntary defence, when easier options were available. <\/span><\/p>\n Although Wood is keen on the rematch, two-time world champion Josh Warrington was ringside and clashed with Lara post-fight. Warrington accused Lara of spitting at him and was held back by security from entering the ring. <\/span><\/p>\n Lara later admitted spitting at his former foe. He told IFL TV: “Of course I did. Because it’s personal between me and him and that’s the way it will always be.”\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Warrington suffered a shock first career defeat by Lara in February 2021, before their rematch seven months later was declared a technical draw after an accidental head clash in the second round. <\/span><\/p>\n “Of course I would like that trilogy [with Josh Warrington],” said Lara. “I want as many belts as possible, but it’s up to Eddie Hearn to make that decision.”<\/span><\/p>\n Wood himself was eyeing a lucrative all-British match-up against Warrington in a stadium fight at his beloved Nottingham Forest’s City Ground. <\/span><\/p>\n There is still a slight chance that fight could happen, with Leeds fighter Warrington also coming off a defeat having <\/span>lost his IBF title<\/span><\/a> to Luis Alberto Lopez in December. <\/span><\/p>\nHeartbreak for Wood in thriller <\/h3>\n
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<\/span><\/span>Wood seeks rematch as Lara & Warrington clash ringside<\/h3>\n
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