Leigh Wood vs. Josh Warrington II | DAZN - 21 February 2026

[Taansend]

Are they fighting at Super-feather or Lightweight?

If it's 130 pounds I reckon Eddie might have the winner go up against Nick Ball.

[mickey1975]

Are they fighting at Super-feather or Lightweight?

If it's 130 pounds I reckon Eddie might have the winner go up against Nick Ball.

On a Queensbury show?

[Taansend]

Are they fighting at Super-feather or Lightweight?

If it's 130 pounds I reckon Eddie might have the winner go up against Nick Ball.

On a Queensbury show?

On a $$$ show, Mickey.

[paultom]

Pointless fight.

Josh Has-Being-Ton hasn't had a good win since 2019 when he beat Galahad. Beating a shot to shit Kiko after he fluked a World Title doens't count as good. Wood should be setting his sights higher rather than circling the washed up body of Has-Being-Ton.

Go to take Ryan Garner's 0 and take his trinkets and he could set himself up for another world title shot.

[MasterG]

Still no oppent for Dave Allen.

I bought tickets to see his fight. Certainly not interested in the 3 female fights of 7 bouts. I hope he is not facing a journeyman who will take him the distance in a borefest.

[mickey1975]

Still no oppent for Dave Allen.

I bought tickets to see his fight. Certainly not interested in the 3 female fights of 7 bouts. I hope he is not facing a journeyman who will take him the distance in a borefest.

The Davis v Fawaz fight is easily the pick of the night, let alone the undercard. I'm also pleased to see Atang in with someone who'll hit back. Thus is purely a run out for Allen, guaranteed to be a journeyman.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Leigh Wood: I want to finish on a positive note

Immediately after the fight, the two-time world featherweight champion acknowledged that his night’s work had been “harder than usual” but he refused to make a snap decision on what the defeat meant for his future.

A few hours later, the picture had cleared.

Wood plunged straight into the fight with the in-form Cacace after a 19-month lay-off and it was his first outing at junior lightweight after spending years grinding himself down to the 126 pound featherweight limit.

Although both were perfectly valid reasons for his performance, Wood didn’t use them as excuses to justify getting back into the ring.

He simply decided that he wanted to retire from the sport that has given him so much on his own terms rather than allowing the business to retire him.

“Once I got home, I just looked at myself and thought, 'I can't go out like that,' Wood (28-4, 17 KOs) told The Ring as he closes out preparations for his February 21 rematch with Josh Warrington.
“What happens in boxing is fighters win a fight and then think, 'That’s guaranteed me a big payday for my next fight' because you negotiate on your last performance.

“So what happens is a lot of fighters finish on a bad note, not because they want to finish on that, but because their value has gone once they lose.

“A lot of people win that last fight and then feel, 'Oh, I won that last fight and the bar was high, I’ll go again.' Then they lose and call it a day.

“I don't really want to go out like that. I want to finish on a positive note whilst I can.”

Deciding to get back into the ring is one thing, maintaining that enthusiasm whilst working through the injuries, tiredness and doubts that a high level training camp throws up is another altogether.

Wood has taken on an unofficial mentorship role at the Ben Davison Performance Centre and genuinely enjoys being involved with the gym’s younger fighters on a day-to-day basis.

Once the fight with Warrington was signed and sealed, he was able to ramp up his training rather than having to hit the ground running.

In the only other rematch of his career, Wood completely outboxed Mauricio Lara just three months after being stopped by the heavy-handed Mexican.

Maybe it is the comfort of knowing exactly what Warrington brings to the table or the relief at being able to concentrate purely on the sport he loves rather than worrying about what the future may hold, but Wood insists that he is performing better than he has for some time.

“I've been in the gym a while - a long time - and I think it’s showed,” he said.

“Normally in sparring, I take a bit of a pummelling sometimes because I'm so focused on the things I need to work on. I kind of neglect everything else and I try to be so dedicated to what I'm practising, I end up losing spars trying to practise the one thing. This time has been different.

“I've been practising the things I need to practise and I've been on fire in sparring and that never happens.”

Wood and Warrington will meet at the Nottingham Arena on February 21. The action will be streamed exclusively on DAZN.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Fight Week!

[forcefraser]

Terrible undercard. Chief support is passable but the rest is pish poor

[veriton]

Has anyone done one of the Matchroom runs on fight day? I'm close by and tempted.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Has anyone done one of the Matchroom runs on fight day? I'm close by and tempted.

What’s a run?

[bigped]

Has anyone done one of the Matchroom runs on fight day? I'm close by and tempted.

What’s a run?

They do a 5k run every show on fight day
Eddie Hearn leads the way

[veriton]

From a Matchroom email I got today:

FRI 20TH FEB: WEIGH IN

All fighters will hit the scales and face off for the final time at Albert Hall (NG1 5AA) from 6pm. Following that, stick around for a live recording of our Small Talk series with plenty of guests to preview the big fight. We'll also be putting on free beers!

SAT 21ST FEB: FIGHT DAY 5k

Start fight day right with our traditional 5k run. All abilities and ages welcome. Meet at Trinity Square (NG1 4AF) at 9am.

[CaptainSpacerod]

Has anyone done one of the Matchroom runs on fight day? I'm close by and tempted.

What’s a run?

They do a 5k run every show on fight day
Eddie Hearn leads the way

Eddie looks in decent shape tbf for a man of his age and lifestyle - travelling all the time and living out of hotel rooms

[forcefraser]

What’s a run?

They do a 5k run every show on fight day
Eddie Hearn leads the way

Eddie looks in decent shape tbf for a man of his age and lifestyle - travelling all the time and living out of hotel rooms

Tall bugger though. Easier to look trim when that tall. Touch of the streak of pish edge about him

[mickey1975]

What’s a run?

They do a 5k run every show on fight day
Eddie Hearn leads the way

Eddie looks in decent shape tbf for a man of his age and lifestyle - travelling all the time and living out of hotel rooms

He takes a full time PT everywhere with him.

[gregregegg]

They do a 5k run every show on fight day
Eddie Hearn leads the way

Eddie looks in decent shape tbf for a man of his age and lifestyle - travelling all the time and living out of hotel rooms

Tall bugger though. Easier to look trim when that tall. Touch of the streak of pish edge about him

Tall is easier to look trim… if you’re not hurt…. So when your young…

Tall after 30 is harder to look trim cause you just pickup random injury’s every 9 seconds….

That said probably on the peptides, phisio and trainer… would help

[Ruthless-RKO]

More than just a number: Bilal Fawaz ready for Ishmael Davis

“It's a beautiful transition of a name, isn't it?” Fawaz (10-1-1, 3 KOs) told The Ring.

“We're aiming for the British and the Commonwealth titles and they are coming home with us. Then I'll be known as the English, the British and the Commonwealth champion.

“How about that to the name?”

After a troubled start to life in Nigeria, Fawaz was trafficked into the UK as a 14-year-old and forced into domestic servitude. He eventually escaped from the house he was being kept in and taken to social services where he was assigned that identification number.

Entering the system didn’t solve his problems.

During some difficult teenage years, Fawaz was stabbed over 20 times and shot in the leg but those problems pale compared to the legal battles that cost him 16 years of his life as he battled for the right to remain in the UK.

With Nigeria denying him citizenship and the UK refusing to accept he was stateless, Fawaz found himself in limbo.

Unable to work, claim benefits or travel, Fawaz twice found himself in deportation centres.

In 2020, he was finally given leave to remain and work in the United Kingdom and set out to get as much as he could from a delayed boxing career.

The overwhelming majority of people would have been unable to focus on anything other than their legal issues but Fawaz has previously said that throughout his troubles, he held on to a picture of the person he dreamt he would become in future. That picture is finally becoming clearer.

“I am that person because I feel that I don't belong where I am right now,” he said.

“I can tell you that I do not belong where I am. I do things to people in the ring that I shouldn't be doing to them. I need at least three, four sparring partners just to make up rounds because one doesn't last enough for me. For you to know where you want to go, you have to believe that where you are is not where you're supposed to be.”

Despite the turmoil surrounding him, Fawaz always stayed in the boxing gym.

He established a reputation as a skilled, talented amateur and represented England on six occasions but his immigration status cost him the opportunity to represent Great Britain at the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games.

Barry McGuigan and allegedly both expressed interest in signing him to professional terms but he was unable to accept any offers or contracts. After finally being given the green light to get his career underway Fawaz struggled to find anybody willing to fight him but now finds himself within touching distance of a significant breakthrough.

He has won Southern Area and English titles and on Saturday night challenges Ishmael Davis (15-3, 6 KOs) for the British and Commonwealth junior middleweight titles.

“The reason why it took me a long time to get here is because I wasn't allowed to work or travel. In the space of three years, look how far we've come. People have been boxing for 10 years and they're still behind me,” he said.

“Look at Ishmael. He’s been boxing for how long? And look where he is right now. I've been boxing [professionally] for three, four years.

“It's not about how many years you have to achieve what you have. It's about how much fire, hunger, desire you have that you don't belong where you are that will get you there. Nothing else matters.

“You will have people tell you, “take it easy, slow down” but they're only speaking from their perspective.

“I tell you, it's not time. It's the willpower, the belief that you don't belong there that will set you apart. I don't belong here. You will see.”

Although the circumstances were totally different, Davis endured a difficult childhood of his own. He fathered twins at just 14 years of age and became deeply involved in street and gang life in Leeds.
He decided that his life needed to change during a spell in prison and has got himself involved in some big fights on high profile cards.

Last November, Fawaz was watching on as Davis broke down in tears after beating Sam Gilley to win the British and Commonwealth titles.

Although he respects Davis’ ability, he believes that the 30-year-old’s reaction to achieving his own dream told it’s own story.

“Ismael is slick, he's good, but he's not good enough because if he was, he would have been British and Commonwealth champion a long time ago. He’s just got it,” he said.

“He knows he don't deserve it because he's falling on the floor crying in the ring like a kid. Where's the dignity? Where's your integrity? You don't kneel down and start crying in the ring because you won the British title. You don't even do that if you win the world title. You swallow your excitement, keep yourself composed.

“So we’ll pick him apart, just like when a butcher is chopping apart a cow - bit by bit - and there's nothing left until the bones. And then we disregard the bone.”

[CaptainSpacerod]

They do a 5k run every show on fight day
Eddie Hearn leads the way

Eddie looks in decent shape tbf for a man of his age and lifestyle - travelling all the time and living out of hotel rooms

He takes a full time PT everywhere with him.

Fair play to him. If I was in his shoes I’d find it hard not to succumb to a lifestyle of decadence - good food, good wine, fast women.

[TheLeprechaun]

Warrington will be winning... until he gets tagged.

I really fancied him to win the first fight. He's the better boxer. Wood just has that equaliser and he will land it at some point unless Warrington is so dominant and gets him out of there or hurts him enough but Wood is one of those extremely tough types who recovers quickly.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Important Announcement

Dave Allen will face the 12-10 Karim Berredjem

[Ruthless-RKO]

Leigh Wood on Warrington rematch: 'I want this to be crystal clear and crisp'

In October of 2023, Wood (28-4, 17 KOs) scored a dramatic seventh round stoppage of the Leeds man.
The time has finally come for the two to meet again. DAZN will broadcast the 12-round junior lightweight grudge match live from Nottingham Arena.

Fans might be more inclined to load up and rewatch Wood's spectacular twelfth round knockout of Michael Conlan, his win over Warrington or even his unsuccessful seven round battle with Mauricio Lara but the 37-year-old from Nottingham is maybe most effective when he can control and tame a pressure fighter.

In an early career stoppage of the dangerous Ryan Doyle, his world title winning decision over the all-action Can Xu and his rematch victory over Lara, Wood was clinical, composed and brilliant.

Wood found an inspired Warrington harder to tame.
“It's hard to look at it and say, 'How come I didn’t didn’t do it so quick with Josh?' but it could have been quick,” Wood told The Ring.

“It’s just certain things. His timing. Josh is always doing the same thing. It's not so much what he does or what is different it's more when. I think obviously by the 6th or 7th round, I figured out his 'when' and got it done.

“I can adapt. I've done so in many fights to get the victory. I don't want to give too much away because I don't want to give him any chance or insight into what I'm going to do at all. I want it to be so crystal clear and crisp and leave that ring without giving anyone any question marks whatsoever.”

Two-and-a-half years have passed since Wood and Warrington first fought but time hasn’t healed old wounds.

What started as a disagreement about the manner of the stoppage has festered into a genuine dislike.

Tensions will build as fight week passes and when the first bell does ring, Warrington will declare war. Wood will have to decide whether to match the two-weight world champion from Leeds punch for punch or attempt to take the heat out of the fight.

“Our tactics plan, it’s so clear this time,” he said.

“It's so clear. Actually, it's comical how clear it is. That leaves me with no excuses to go in there and do what I need to do.

“Winning is everything. It always has been.

“Josh never gave me any credit for the first fight. He thinks it's a lucky shot. If we walk through the whole fight, you can actually see it's not a lucky shot.

“I've got a scouting report dated from way before the fight was made with writing and videos of moments that'll hit because of certain things he does and it was clear as day. Exactly what was said, happened. It could have been a lot earlier than I did it.

“But I'm not going to share too much. I just want to go out there and do what I need to do in style and hopefully this time he gives me the credit for it.”

Bragging rights will be on the line this weekend but Wood has another major reason for wanting to have his hand raised.

He is now 37 years old and acknowledges that he is at the stage where every ring walk could be his last.

As keen as he is to hurt Warrington, Wood is more desperate to win and end his career on a high.

“It's pretty dark and then there are thousands of flashlights and torches on phones from the top of the arena to the bottom. Then you hear the fans singing Mull of Kintyre,” he said when asked to describe how that ring walk feels.

“It's very special. People say, 'Why do you want to fight again?' That's why. How many more times am I going to get to experience that in my life? Probably one more.

"If I fight again, another, but who knows. At least one more.”

[Ruthless-RKO]

Leigh Wood: ‘I’ve taken a big pay cut to get my hands on Josh Warrington’

Leigh Wood will finally get the chance to put all doubt to bed against Josh Warrington this Saturday in Nottingham, England.

The two bitter rivals first faced off in Sheffield back in October 2023 with Wood defending his WBA featherweight title with a controversial win. Warrington was having the better of the contest, with Wood seemingly not at the races, but the tide turned in the seventh when Wood had Warrington down heavily. Warrington returned to his feet and walked to his corner, but with Warrington’s back to the referee Michael Alexander the contest was waved off.

There were protests from Warrington and his corner who claimed he was fit to continue, but Wood and his team were adamant that it was only going to end one way. A rematch was instantly discussed and seemed to be on the cards for a year after their original clash, but it never came to fruition.

“When the rematch first came around, the money wasn't right,” Wood told BS. “But I took a massive reduction in pay to make this fight, just to let you all know that. That's what this fight means to me, so I can't wait to get my hands on him and do a better job.”

Eddie Hearn, the promoter of the first bout, had argued that the money both Wood and Warrington expected just wasn't on the table after Wood vacated his WBA strap. The bout never materialized and both chased a move up in weight and a clash with Anthony Cacace. Warrington would take him on first, losing a unanimous decision for the IBF junior lightweight title in September 2024. Wood would take on Cacace for the lesser-respected IBO 130lb strap in May 2025, suffering a ninth round finish from the Irishman.

“Yeah, obviously, no loss is easy to take,” said Wood of the defeat. “But I knew the risk going into the fight, it was a step up in more aspects than one, but it was a risk and I've took risks my whole career. I've always run towards a challenge and never shy away from it. But yeah, I'm feeling good. This is a style that suits me a lot better. Matched a lot more evenly, size-wise. But yeah, like I said, it was a massive opportunity and risk as well, which I ran towards and I fell short.”

Warrington laid down his gloves center ring following his loss to Cacace, signalling his retirement from the sport. That decision was short-lived, with Warrington believing he had much more to give and returned with a unanimous decision win over Asad Asif Khan in April 2024. So, what did Wood make of Warrington’s return to the sport last year?

“Underwhelming. Very underwhelming,” he said. “He looked very nervous. He looked a bit gun-shy. Maybe he had a lot of pressure that night because if he lost to him, that would have been it.”

Despite Warrington’s flat showing against Asif Khan, Wood expects a much better version to enter the ring on Saturday night.

“[I’m expecting] the best Josh Warrington. I'm preparing for the best,” Wood said. “I'm preparing for the best you've seen him, as I did the first time. That's what I've got to expect. When there's a lot on the line, it brings the best out of people.”

And how does Wood believe Saturday’s contest ends after a controversial finish in the first encounter?

“I think I win by stoppage and a better performance,” he said. “More in control and a controlled stoppage as well.”

[Ruthless-RKO]

Warrington Confident He'll Knock Out Wood In Grudge Rematch

Hostilities will definitely restart when the two former world featherweight champions meet Saturday night. DAZN will stream the 12-round junior lightweight fight from a sold-out Motorpoint Arena in Wood’s hometown of Nottingham, England (7 p.m. GMT; 2 p.m. ET).

The rift between them intensified since they first boxed in October 2023.

Written off beforehand, Warrington rolled back the years and set about Wood from the opening bell. He had built a solid lead before Wood turned the tide dramatically and scored a controversial seventh-round stoppage.

Immediately after their fight, any disagreements and differences of opinion centered around the nature of the stoppage. Over time, a bitter grudge has developed.

This delayed rematch may be the most lucrative, high-profile option remaining for both men, but it certainly isn’t a manufactured rivalry. Wood and Warrington don’t like each other.

Both former champions have seen and done almost everything there is to do in the sport and know there is little to be gained by arguing during fight week. With their second fight just two days away, they toned down the trash talk and spoke confidently about their own chances.

“I’m confident. That’s not me thinking it’s going to be easy,” Wood said. “I don’t think it’s going to be easy, I’m not expecting it to be easy, nor do I really want it to be easy because I actually feel better when I actually go through a little bit and get the victory as you’ve seen in previous fights. But, yeah, I’m confident. I know what I need to do. It’s a lot clearer.”

Now 37, the two-time WBA featherweight champion acknowledges that his thrill-a-minute career is drawing to a close, but Wood (28-4, 17 KOs) has spoken repeatedly about how well his preparations have gone and believes he is primed to give his hometown fans one more memorable night.

“We’re both going to have the will to win,” Wood said. “I’m not underestimating him, I know what he brings. We’re both two-time world champions and you have to have something about you to get to that level. But I just feel on Saturday night, my something is going to shine so f------ bright.”

Warrington (32-4-1, 8 KOs) will know that he must even the score with Wood if he is to keep himself in the mix for big fights.

“The Leeds Warrior” has won only two fights since he was shockingly stopped by the then-unknown Mauricio Lara back in February 2021. Despite the controversial result, his performance against Wood was arguably his best showing in that time.

Warrington’s father and trainer, Sean O’Hagan, said that the 35-year-old veteran’s preparations have been reminiscent of the days when he willed himself to the top of the featherweight division.

Warrington laughed off Wood’s claim that he will win even quicker this time around and insisted that if the fight does end inside the distance, it will be he who has his hand raised.

“Absolutely, absolutely. That's the only way I see it going to be honest with you,” Warrington said. “I can’t really see what Leigh’s going to do differently to make it go quicker because he tried to push me in the first fight. We boxed him, we out-fought him. We pushed him onto the ropes, we went on the back foot.

“We did everything we had to do, but obviously left ourselves very open and he did catch me with a fantastic shot and then five clean ones after that and the fight was over. That’s how quickly this spot can be changed but we know what not to do this time around and what to press him a little bit more with so I’m very, very confident that the fight will go early.”

[gilgamesh]

Should be an interesting little scrap there. I like Warrington in this fight ever so slightly. He was beating Wood pretty comfortably in their 1st outing before walking into one, and is just a better fighter overall in general really. He may be past it at this point, and simply unable to get out of the way of the shot that will do him in again, but I think he can pull it off this time.

It's not out of the question he could get a cuts stoppage on Wood or something either. A KO is pretty unlikely for Warrington since he's so feather fisted, but Wood is definitely chinny.

I look forward to seeing Dave Allen get another W on this card.