Anthony Cacace v Leigh Wood - Tale of the Tape: Weight, height, reach, trainer & professional boxing records

We analyse the credentials and statistics of Anthony Cacace and Leigh Wood as the pair get set to contest an intriguing IBO super-featherweight title showdown in Nottingham in May.

On Saturday 10th May, fight fans will be treated to a thrilling domestic clash as Anthony Cacace and Leigh Wood battle it out, at Nottingham Area.  

While only the lightly regarded IBO super-featherweight title is at stake, it is a match up between two in-form fighters.  

Cacace ignited a career that was close to fizzling out when he stopped Joe Cordina for the IBF 130lbs belt, before a victory over Josh Warrington kept the momentum going.

Can he score a hat-trick of victories over British fighters?  

Wood had his own Cinderella moment four years ago and has been involved in several wars since.

But after a prolonged period out of the ring, can he produce yet another moment of magic?

Before we find out, let's take a look at 'The Tale of the Tape'.

Anthony Cacace v Leigh Wood - Tale of the Tape

	Anthony Cacace	Leigh Wood
Age:	36	36
Nickname:	'The Apache'	'Leight-thal'
Height:	5ft 10ins	5ft 7ins
Reach:	71ins	67ins
Weight:	Super-featherweight	Super-featherweight
Trainer:	Michael Hawkins	Ben Davison
Record:	23-1 (8 KOs)	28-3 (17 KOs)
Last Fight:	Won - (UD) v Josh Warrington (September 2024)	Won - (TKO) v Josh Warrington (October 2023)

Anthony Cacace - In Profile

For years, Anthony Cacace was a myth.  

Those who sparred with the Belfast man spoke of his talent, speed and power, however, under the lights, a different fighter emerged; one who was tentative and rarely scored a stoppage.  

That was until a year ago!

Last May, ‘The Apache’ took on Joe Cordina for the IBF super-featherweight belt, and whilst the Welshman was the heavy favourite, Cacace ripped up the script, stopping the champion in the eighth round.  

Finally, the boxer who Carl Frampton and others waxed lyrical about existed outside the gym.  

The 36-year-old built on that win by outclassing Josh Warrington over 12 rounds, at Wembley stadium, but given Warrington was not ranked by the sanctioning body, the IBF belt was not on the line.  

Ultimately, Cacace would never defend the strap as he vacated it in January, after the IBF mandated him to face Eduardo ‘Sugar’ Nunez.

In the end, the risk-to-reward ratio was not right.  

Instead, ‘The Apache’ has opted for a thrilling domestic dust-up, in hostile territory.

After 13 years as a professional, Cacace is finally getting big fights, and bigger paydays. He will be desperate to keep the run going, knowing that a defeat to Leigh Wood would bring his momentum crashing to a halt.

Strengths:	Weaknesses:
Big at the weight	Tight at the weight
Switches stances effectively	Can be outworked
Hand speed	Smothers his own work
Combination punching	Stays in range too long

Leigh Wood - In Profile

Leigh Wood is perhaps the most exciting fighter in Britain.  

In his last four fights, he has won two by stoppage while down on the cards, and has suffered a crushing knockout defeat in a bout he was winning.  

When the Nottingham man is boxing, don’t blink.  

In 2021, ‘Leigh-thal’ turned his career, which was in danger of stalling, by upsetting the odds to defeat Xu Can. That performance earned him the WBA ‘Regular’ featherweight belt.  

In his first defence, he was on the floor against Michael Conlan, in the opening round. The dazed Englishman struggled to find a foothold in the bout, as the hand speed and southpaw stance of the Rio 2016 Olympian caused Wood no end of trouble.  

Wood never lost faith, he knew once punch could change the fight, and in the 11th round, he found it, dropping the challenger.  

In the final frame, he produced another, sending Conlan through the ropes, bringing the fight to a dramatic conclusion.  

A year later, Wood was boxing beautifully against Mauricio Lara, before being stopped. The 36-year-old gained revenge three months on, winning by unanimous decision.  

In his last defence, ‘Leigh-thal’ was finding the pressure of Josh Warrington a tricky puzzle to solve, before scoring a knockout right on the bell at the end of the seventh frame.  

Like Cacace, Wood vacated his strap when a mandatory was called against a dangerous mandatory, this time, Otabek Kholmatov.  

Now, the Englishman has been out of the ring for 19 months. Moving up in weight, Wood no longer has the advantage of being the physically bigger man.  

Will the Nottingham fighter produce another night of high drama? We will see.

Strengths:	Weaknesses:
Power	Struggles with southpaws
Never loses faith when behind in a fight	Defensively open when throwing hooks
Jab	Leans back with his chin in the air
Hand speed	Inactivity

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