By: Sean Crose
As they say, all it takes is one punch. Defending WBA world featherweight champion Leigh Wood was on track to win at Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham, England on Saturday when a single shot by rival Mauricio Lara sent the talented British tennis player to the floor. match and is disqualified from the match. Up until that point, the taller, more lithe Wood was performing well after a long jab while Lara struggled to get inside. Although Lara was able to land effectively at times, it was defending champion Wood who controlled the terrain until game seven, when the closing shot was taken.
Still, even much of the seventh round seemed to be more fundamentally the same for Wood and Lara. It wasn’t until the last minute of the chapter, when Lara unleashed a left hook that Jack Dempsey would have impressed, that Wood was caught clean, his reign as world champion then abruptly halted. For the credit, Wood was able to get up before the referee could finish the count. However, the man seemed so wobbly that his angle was skewed. “Leigh Wood is a great champion,” kindly Lara said afterward. “He hit really hard, he’s a smart boxer, but I’m completely satisfied tonight.”
