Leigh Wood is ready for the second defense of his World Boxing Association (WBA) featherweight title. The challenge will not be easy against Mexican Mauricio Lara next February 18 but the champion is fully confident that he will get the victory and, moreover, it will be by knockout. 

Wood has been champion since July 2021, when he defeated Can Xu and won the title. In March of last year he made his first defense by giving the knockout of the year to Michael Conlan and now he will return to the ring after a lapse of inactivity due to an injury. 

In fact, Wood was scheduled to face Lara last September but a hand injury forced him to withdraw from that bout. Now he’s ready to take on a challenge he’s taking very seriously. 

“If I do what I plan to do, this fight won’t make it halfway,” the champion assured in an interview with the BBC.

“He said I faked my injury and that bothered me.Why would I fake my injury?” the Nottingham native continued.

Wood stressed that he took the fight because he wanted to, as it was not a mandatory and he could have chosen any other opponent at this point. “I didn’t have to fight him. This is a voluntary defense, but I want to test myself and I’m going to show him what I’m all about.”

Finally, he assured that the “Bronco” has a style to which he can adapt and that will benefit him during the fight. It will be a confrontation between two high-level rivals for the world title, in which Wood intends to continue as monarch of the pioneer organization.