Boxing's Miracle Man - The amazing escapes of Leigh Wood

When ‘Leigh-thal’ Leigh Wood enters the ring on Saturday night against Anthony Cacace, he will end an eighteen-month gap between fights .

Fans will be on the edge of their seats as the Nottingham-man, despite taking on one of his toughest opponents in Cacace, has a long history of come-from-behind victories seemingly snatched from the jaws of defeat.

Leigh Wood vs Michael Conlan (2022)

Mark Robinson

Chosen as the 2022 fight of the year by The Ring, his twelfth-round knockout of Michael Conlan, shot Wood into superstardom . He came into the fight as the underdog - against the Olympic pedigree of Conlan, who was touted to become a world champion sooner rather than later. 

Wood was dropped by an overhand left at the end of the first round and beat the count to make it back to his corner. Conlan had the better of the next eight rounds, outboxing the WBA champ.

As the championship rounds approached Conlan seemed to be tiring, losing the power on his punches, unable to stop an advancing Wood.

Going into the final round, Wood was behind on all three judges’ scorecards and needed a knockout to retain his belt. With Conlan against the ropes, Wood unloaded a combination, landing  a short right hand that sent Conlan through the ropes and into the arms of his brother. 

Wood fell to his knees and was embraced by his trainer Ben Davison - celebrating an unlikely comeback win in his hometown.

 

Wood vs Mauricio Lara (both 2023)

Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing

Wood faced adversity again in his next fight – getting knocked out by Mauricio Lara, who landed a left hook on the chin of Wood, putting him on his back in the seventh round. The Brit got back to his feet but looked unsteady and his corner threw the towel in.

Wood saw no need for a tune-up fight and took an immediate rematch with Lara only three months after the knockout. He was sure he had made the necessary adjustments to re-capture his WBA title from the Mexican.

Lara was no match for Wood, getting stuck at the end of long body jabs, left hooks, and rear uppercuts, losing a unanimous decision after getting dropped in the second round. The judges scored the fight 118-109, 116-111, and 118-109 . 

 

Wood vs Josh Warrington (2023)

Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing

In the first defence of his second reign as WBA featherweight champion, Wood faced compatriot two-time champion Josh Warrington. 

Wood was the favourite heading into this fight, as Warrington was coming back from a ten-month layoff and an upset loss to Luis Alberto Lopez. 

The Leeds man looked ready to spring an upset of his own, however, coming out with fast and powerful combinations that Wood did not look prepared for. He had the champion uncharacteristically backed up against the ropes in the third round and began teeing off in the sixth. 

Ahead on all the scorecards going into the seventh, it looked like Warrington would hold a world title again. Then as the former IBF champion advanced, Wood found a left hook that shook Warrington and followed it with a five-shot combination to put him down . 

Warrington got to his feet, but the referee declared the bout over.

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