It doesn’t take a genius to work out that Leigh Wood and Josh Warrington don’t like each other.
More than two years have passed since the former featherweight titleholders first shared a ring, yet time apart has only hardened the edges of their relationship rather than softened them.
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“He’s just not my kind of person,” Wood (28-4, 17 KOs) told Uncrowned ahead of chapter two of their rivalry. Their 2023 first meeting ended inside seven rounds in Wood’s favor, with the Nottingham man forcing a stoppage that looks conclusive on paper, even if Warrington still argues the result deserves an asterisk.
“He continues to contradict himself,” Wood said, referring to claims that Warrington was winning and controlling the contest until the time of the seventh-round stoppage. “He can’t have watched the fight back, because if he had, he would surely realize that he only won a few of those rounds, and they came at a big cost in the end. He’s just lying to himself.”
England’s Nottingham Arena hosts the rematch Saturday, live on DAZN, and Wood is leaning heavily on knowledge he acquired in his first meeting with Warrington (32-4-1, 8 KOs), who — monikered as “The Leeds Warrior” — will be fighting in hostile territory.
“I’m a smart fighter, and I’ve got a smart team around me,” Wood explained. “Once I have shared a ring with someone, I am able to work out how to solve them as an opponent and make sure that I get the better of them once again. I showed that conclusively against Mauricio Lara before the first Warrington fight (securing a decision victory over Lara after a seventh-round TKO loss three months prior) and I’ll do the same against Warrington.”
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Since their first meeting in October 2023, Wood and Warrington have both lost to Irish southpaw Anthony Cacace (24-1, 9 KOs), all but ending their aspirations for another shot at a world title. But their personal stars have aligned once again in what is being sold by promoters Matchroom Boxing as “Last Man Standing.”
And we nearly didn’t make it this far.
Ahead of their scheduled recording for DAZN’s new “Cards on the Table” digital shoulder-program, tensions rose between the pair of now 130-pounders before the cameras started rolling.
“He had been annoying me all day,” Wood said. “It was so awkward — we were supposed to be asking each other these questions, but 10 minutes before we pretty much had to get separated. He’s just been so disrespectful to me after I won the first fight, and that doesn’t sit right with me.
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“He was fine before the first fight. But ever since I beat him he has started crying, saying that I got him with a ‘lucky punch’ and stuff like this. He’s delusional. But in reality, you’ve got to be a bit delusional in boxing, so I am not surprised.”
Leigh Wood drops Josh Warrington in the seventh round during their WBA featherweight world title fight in October 2023.
(Mark Robinson via Getty Images)
“He’s a grass [snitch] as well,” Wood continued. “He was being shown around the City Ground a few years ago and one of the staff members made a funny comment back to Warrington as he was giving my club, Nottingham Forest, disrespect — saying things like ‘the fans are s***.’ So the member of staff asked Josh to look up at the floodlights of the stadium and told him that was what he would be seeing once I knocked him out.
“Then Josh grassed [snitched] him out afterward to another member of staff! The thing is, he wasn’t wrong. The only thing he was wrong about is that it was the Sheffield Arena lights he was looking up at rather than the City Ground’s.”
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Wood never needs any added encouragement to sing the praises of his coaching team, composed of Ben Davison and Lee Wylie. Their meticulous preparation is something Wood has felt invigorated by in training camps, to the point where he’s even started “winning spars” in the 33rd camp of his pro career.
“I’ve been so sharp in sparring — it’s almost as though everything has finally come together,” he said. “I am not going to make any excuses regarding my loss to Cacace, but everything wasn’t right. I am used to getting beaten up in sparring as I am trying to work on too many things at once, but this time around it’s all working in unison.”
Tensions are high heading into Saturday’s rematch in Nottingham, England.
(Mark Robinson via Getty Images)
Wood refutes the idea that he needs this type of rivalry to get him going at this stage of his career. At age 37, Wood has flirted with the idea of retirement over the past few years, but is adamant he has always pursued grudge matches throughout his career to get the best out of him as a fighter.
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“I’m not going to make any decisions now [on retirement],” Wood said. “But I have always wanted to leave the sport on a positive note. It’s hard in boxing, though. As your stock is always lower after a loss, so you will naturally get more opportunities off the back of a win — it’s just knowing how many more times to roll the dice.”
But if this is to be Wood’s last professional outing, he’ll be doing it with a loyal army of support in his corner. Fighting inside Nottingham Forest’s City Ground has been a long-term dream for Wood, but he appears at peace with the realization that particular ship has probably sailed. That’s not to say he isn’t delighted to be fighting back inside the Nottingham Arena for the fifth time in his career.
“[Warrington] can’t change his style, so there is no chance he wins this fight,” Wood said. “I know exactly what I need to do to repeat the first win, and stylistically, he is perfect for me. Warrington needs to be perfect for 36 minutes, whereas it can just take me one or two seconds. And I intend on being even more perfect than the first time around. Maybe then he’ll respect me?”
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