The WBA featherweight world title is on the line as Leigh Wood defends his title against Josh Warrington at the Utilita Arena, Sheffield on DAZN.
Watch the official promo on YouTube: Watch
Wood, hailing from Nottingham, previously reclaimed his WBA 126lbs crown with a stunning 12-round masterclass against Mauricio Lara in May. Despite suffering a seventh-round stoppage defeat to ‘Bronco’ earlier this year, Wood bravely called for an immediate rematch, in which he outclassed Lara with a brilliantly disciplined display, securing a landslide points win.
Meanwhile, Leeds’ very own Warrington is eyeing his third featherweight world title after a close points loss to Luis Alberto Lopez in December 2022, his first defeat in his home city. Warrington, who has not been in action since his loss to Lopez, is eager to return to the top of the division. A victory over his British rival would put him in prime position for a unification rematch with Lopez.
Leigh Wood vs. Josh Warrington: Face-Off: Watch
“In terms of the followings we’ve got, the football clubs and the cities, this is arguably the biggest British rivalry in the sport,” said Wood, expressing his excitement for the upcoming bout.
The co-main event features Terri Harper (14-1-1, 6 KOs) defending her WBA super welterweight title against Cecilia Braekhus (37-2, 9 KOs) in a 10-round bout.
The initial bout between Harper and Braekhus was scheduled earlier this year but was postponed due to Braekhus' illness. Harper, the former WBC and IBO super-featherweight world champion, secured the WBA 154lbs world title by defeating Scotland’s Hannah Rankin last year. On the other hand, Norway’s Braekhus, a former undisputed champion at 147lbs, aims to become a two-division world champion.
Braekhus, known as the "First Lady", has been a significant figure in women's boxing, holding multiple welterweight titles from 2009 to 2020. However, she faced two consecutive defeats to Jessica McCaskill in 2020 and 2021, marking the only losses in her professional career. Harper expressed her excitement for the rescheduled bout, viewing it as a "passing of the baton" and a step closer to her goal of becoming undisputed in her weight class. She reminisced about her previous fights in Sheffield and is eager to unify the titles in the same arena.
Main card:
▪️Leigh Wood vs. Josh Warrington, 12 rounds, for Wood’s WBA featherweight title ▪️Terri Harper vs. Cecilia Braekhus, 10 rounds, for Harper’s WBA super welterweight title, vacant WBO super welterweight title ▪️Kieron Conway vs. Linus Udofia, 12 rounds, middleweight ▪️Hopey Price vs. Connor Coghill, 12 rounds, featherweight ▪️Junaid Bostan vs. Corey McCulloch, 8 rounds, super welterweight
Prelims: (live on YouTube at 11:45 ET)
▪️Cameron Vuong vs. Engel Gomez, 6 rounds, super featherweight ▪️Nico Leivars vs. Ryan Walker, 8 rounds, super bantamweight ▪️Koby McNamara vs. Francisco Rodriguez, 6 rounds, bantamweight
