Leigh Wood vs Mauricio Lara Preview & Picks
Mauricio Lara is tipped to win the WBA world featherweight title.
The Mexican fighter has fight-finishing power and thrives when fighting in hostile environments.
- Mauricio Lara is unbeaten in his last 15 fights
- 10 of Mauricio Lara’s last 11 wins have come by KO/TKO
- 5 of Mauricio Lara’s last 8 wins have come inside 6 rounds
- Leigh Wood has been knocked out inside 6 rounds previously
Leigh Wood Form
Leigh Wood is the reigning WBA featherweight world champion and has a 26-2 (16 KOs) professional record.
Wood enjoyed a 12-fight win streak between May 2014 and October 2019 that earned him Commonwealth and European titles.
He lost the European featherweight crown in February 2020 though, when he dropped a majority decision to Jazz Dickens in a ‘Golden Contract’ semi-final fight.
The 34-year-old has bounced back in style though, winning three straight fights to become a world champion for the first time.
Wood’s run started with a ninth-round stoppage of Reece Mould that secured the British featherweight title.
In his next outing he knocked out Xu Can in the final round to win the WBA (Regular) featherweight title.
The Nottingham fighter than made a successful first defence of that belt in March 2022, stopping Michael Conlan in the 12th round.
When Leo Santa Cruz relinquished his WBA (Super) title later that year, Wood was upgraded to full WBA world featherweight champion status.
Mauricio Lara Form
Mauricio Lara possesses a 25-2-1 (18 KOs) professional record and is on a 15-fight unbeaten run.
Lara spent the first six years of his career fighting on his home soil in Mexico, compiling a 22-2 record before finally heading to foreign shores.
The 24-year-old made an immediate splash though, knocking out an unbeaten former world champion.
Lara challenged ex-IBF featherweight champion Josh Warrington in London and pulled off a major surprise by knocking out the British fighter in the ninth round.
The pair then met in an immediate rematch later that year, but the fight ended in a technical draw when Lara sustained a cut from an accidental clash of heads in the second round.
Lara got back to winning ways in 2022, making quick work of his two outings to earn himself this world title shot.
He stopped Emilio Sanchez with just one second to go in the third round, before taking out Jose Sanmartin inside three rounds.
Leigh Wood vs Mauricio Lara FAQs
Where can I watch the Leigh Wood vs Mauricio Lara live stream?
You can watch the Leigh Wood vs Mauricio Lara live stream at DAZN.
Where is Leigh Wood vs Mauricio Lara taking place?
Leigh Wood vs Mauricio Lara is taking place at the Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham, England on Saturday, February 18.