Via Barry Holbrook: Mauricio Lara predicts he will knock out newly crowned WBA featherweight champion Leigh Wood next week when the two meet on February 18 at Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham, England.
Wood (26-2, 16 KOs) says he won’t run from Lara (25-2-1, 18 KOs) around the ring during the night. He will meet him in the center ring and will go to war, looking to beat him at his own game.
Leigh feels that it will be difficult for 24-year-old Lara as he will meet a noisy crowd of his supporters in Nottingham who will make them heard.
Lara has won her last two games since a disappointing two-half technical draw in a rematch against Josh Warrington in September 2021.
That fight will be a lesson for Lara that he has to start fast because you never know when a clash of heads will bring the fight to a halt early in the innings.
If Lara starts slowly against Wood, he could be in trouble even without being slashed. Wood is a great boxer, and he’s not someone Lara can spend warm-up time with if he wants to win.
Wood will not run away from Lara
“Nobody kicked Mauricio Lara in the butt,” coach Ben Davison told Boxing match. “We actually sat in the room. Leigh won the British Championship that night,” Ben said of the night Lara beat Joshua Warrington in February 2021 in London. Within a half, I said to Leigh, ‘Josh Warrington is about to be beaten.’
“As I said, ‘Style makes the battles.’ Bad mix style for Warrington. He was always confident, but now people have a better understanding of where he came from and why he came,” Davison said of Woods.
“How to identify your opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, and your own strengths and weaknesses. His preparation is second to none, and that is the source of that confidence. He’s reckless, he’s brave, he’s dangerous, but the attributes that make him dangerous also make him vulnerable,” Davison said of Lara.
“We won’t fly around the ring, running away from him sure.”
Lara vows to KO Leigh if he turns off
“Of course, it surprised me. Mauricio Lara said: “We knew no one wanted to go up against me in the 126-pound weight class for the world title. “Believe me, if he turns off the phone, the fight will be over quickly. I’m happy. The UK is my second home.
“My coaches, Alejandro, Isaac, Arcos, their job is to find mistakes and we fix them bit by bit in the gym.
“It was an uphill fight,” Lara said of Wood’s final match against Michael Conlan. We know he’s hurt going into this fight, but he’s come to defend his title, and that’s what I want.
“We knew it was an uphill battle. We know it’s an acid test. We know Leigh Wood is a great champion, but I have big aspirations and a desire to be a world champion. Like I said, no matter what, I have to do it this time. I like challenges, big battles, and this is one of them.
“I am grateful to him [Wood] for being in this war, but this is going to happen, and we know what we’re capable of doing. People around me, people who quit their jobs to join me in the gym.
“People who leave their personal lives behind to be with me. That’s what motivates me every day. It motivates me and motivates me, as I said before, and I have a huge source of motivation, which is my daughter. I fight every day for her, and I will do my best for her.
“I have said this from the very beginning, since the first opportunity against Josh Warrington. I wanted to change my family’s future, and I did and will continue to do so. Much. Both financially and mentally,” Lara said when asked how much his life has changed since his victory over Josh Warrington in 2021 in Leed, England.
“The whole of Mexico applauds me, and that makes me proud, knowing that I represent Mexico all over the world, and I will do it again this time. It brings people closer to me.
“Yes, we know it’s unfortunate what happened,” Lara said when asked if he was disappointed by the outcome of his rematch against Warrington in September 2021, when he was cut off. the match after two innings due to repeated headbutts from Josh.
“We know what he did, and like I said, this issue with him is personal. Well, what can someone who is knocked down in nine rounds say? Lara said when told that Warrington predicted that Wood would beat him easily on February 18.
“Who broke his jaw, injured his shoulder and elbow? Chicken always criticizes people, but it knows Bronco Lara is coming for it, and it knows I will destroy it.
“We know he’s a good fighter, but it will be a really tough fight for him. We know how prepared we are and we have caused discontent in this country before, and it will too. [on February 18th]. It won’t go beyond Thursday,” Lara said.
Leigh: No one will walk past me
Leigh Wood said of Lara: “He said a few things that made it pretty personal. “He said I faked the injury. He said that all Britons were afraid to run away. No one will walk in town and walk past me. It won’t happen.
“I will meet him in the middle of the ring, and I will win by knockout. Let’s Dance. I have three more games, maybe four at most. I just bite down and make those sacrifices.
“Over the years, things changed. You don’t always want what you want when you start, but some things will change. The first thing is winning England and then winning the world title.
“The third thing is the headline at City Ground [in Nottingham]. Now I only have one more thing to do, and to win this war, I believe it’s over,” Wood said.
“It will be a special atmosphere, this fight. This time it’s going to be even better because last time it was split with Nottingham and the Irish,” Wood said.
Lara won’t make it halfway – Wood
“There are no shortcuts in boxing. I can’t skip the levels. Wood said. “I have had quite a few setbacks in my career. Literally not fighting, getting injured or going bankrupt for a long time, but a thing about me. I’ve always been training, and I’ve always believed in myself.
“When I was winning, I was practicing. When things were going in my personal life, I was training. When my niece passed, I trained, and my sacrifice and dedication paid off,” Wood said.
“From the outside, he looks very dangerous. He had a devastating win over Josh Warrington,” Wood said. “There’s a lot of things he does well, and he’s dangerous, but at the same time, there’s a lot of things he does very, very poorly and you just can’t be ignored at this level,” said Wood of Lala.
“He didn’t have to come find him. I will be right in front of him. When he enters the ring, he will meet a very hostile crowd. I can’t see him halfway through,” Wood said.
