Leigh Wood, Josh Warrington, and the importance of genuine nastiness in boxing

More than two years after their first fight, Wood and Warrington will meet again as one of Britain’s most underrated rivalries resumes SportBoxingLeigh Wood, Josh Warrington, and the importance of genuine nastiness in boxingMore than two years after their first fight, Wood and Warrington will meet again as one of Britain’s most underrated rivalries resumesSteve Bunce Monday 16 February 2026 09:34 GMTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popoveropen image in galleryLeigh Wood (left) and Josh Warrington during their first clash (Getty Images)Your support helps us to tell the storyRead moreSupport NowFrom reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.Your support makes all the difference.Read moreThere has to be a bit of genuine nastiness in any successful British boxing rivalry. Boxers have shared 45 championship rounds and not really disliked each other, and met in trilogies that lacked a lasting moment of hate. Josh Warrington and Leigh Wood fight on Saturday in Nottingham, in a long overdue rematch and a fight that other domestic rivalries should be measured against. Warrington and Wood is nasty; it is also a fight for survival at boxing’s elite level. Their first meeting was in 2023 in Sheffield, which was fairly neutral, and Wood was the defending WBA featherweight champion. They could have met a few years earlier; they had both had spells as world champions at the same weight and time. They had a natural and rare rivalry as world champions, and they were mentioned as opponents for each other. Going into their first fight there was a lot of hostility and abuse. Wood was champion, Warrington had lost his title in his previous fight, 10 months earlier. They both made claims about the other not wanting the fight. It turned personal and stayed personal on the night. RecommendedKO artists Fabio Wardley and Daniel Dubois to clash in world heavyweight title fightOleksandr Usyk given ultimatum over voluntary title defence: ‘Interim champion next’Eddie Hearn ‘expects’ Anthony Joshua to fight again but offers warning to fansIt was a truly savage affair with a furious start: late shots, low punches, point deductions, warnings, cuts, anger and – going into the seventh round – it looked like Warrington was going to pull away. After six completed rounds, Warrington was up on all three scorecards (58-56 and 59-55 twice) and Wood was struggling. The fight switched in a second with one short hook and then, as Warrington slumped, a fast combination dropped him heavily to the canvas. There were just seconds left in the seventh round when he beat the count and staggered, stunned and confused, to a corner. open image in galleryWarrington was leading on the judges’ scorecards before he was floored (Getty Images)open image in galleryWarrington beat the referee’s count but the fight was halted (Getty Images)It was correctly stopped; he was in no condition to continue. Warrington was angry with the stoppage, still is. A rematch was immediately talked about but just never happened. Still, their rivalry intensified. There has been a lot of talk and uncertainty since that first fight. There was even a rumour that they would meet in a bare-knuckle match. Since their dramatic first clash they have both had spells of inactivity. Wood has fought just the once and he was stopped; Warrington has won and lost since that night in Sheffield in October 2023. They have aged and slowed, but their rivalry remains as vicious as ever. “He’s average now, and he has looked nervous in recent fights,” insisted Wood, who is 37 and has been a pro since 2011. Enjoy 185+ fights a year on DAZN, the Global Home of BoxingNever miss a fight from top promoters. Watch on your devices anywhere, anytime.Buy NowADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.Enjoy 185+ fights a year on DAZN, the Global Home of BoxingNever miss a fight from top promoters. Watch on your devices anywhere, anytime.Buy NowADVERTISEMENT. If you sign up to this service we will earn commission. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.“I will show that I’m better than him and he knows that. I hate him and he knows that,” said Warrington, who is 35 and first won a world title in 2018. open image in