Nottingham's Leigh Wood defends his WBA world featherweight title against dangerous 24-year-old Mexican Mauricio Lara in a contest in which fireworks are guaranteed.

Wood was arguably seconds away from defeat in one of the fights of 2022 a little over 11 months ago at the Nottingham Arena, when he knocked out Irishman Michael Conlan in dramatic fashion to defend his regular version of the WBA title.

Since that epic encounter, Wood has been elevated to super champion after Leo Santa Cruz vacated his belt, and his upcoming bout will be his first voluntary defence of this title.

The 34-year-old Wood is a popular local lad, this is his fourth bout at the Nottingham Arena and a packed crowd will be in full voice to cheer on their man in the headline event.

Wood v Lara tops the bill, which also features the undefeated Dalton Smith in a British title fight as well as decorated amateurs Gary Cully, Cheavon Clarke and Gamal Yafai who all continue in their promising professional careers.

What	Leigh Wood v Mauricio Lara
Where	Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham
When	Saturday 18th February, 2023
How to watch	DAZN
Odds	Leigh Wood 2/1, Mauricio Lara 4/11

When is Leigh Wood v Mauricio Lara?

The fight is scheduled to take place on Saturday 18th February 2023.

What time is Leigh Wood v Mauricio Lara?

The eight-bout card in Nottingham starts at 15.45 with the televised action kicking off at 19.00. The main event ring walks are scheduled for approximately 22.50.

Where is Leigh Wood v Mauricio Lara?

The fight is set to take place at the Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham.

Nottingham legend Carl Froch headlined cards at this arena a number of times during his illustrious career and the local crowd now turns out for popular local lad Leigh Wood,  with this his second consecutive title defence headlining in Nottingham. 

A large and raucous crowd are expected to turn out once again to support Wood.

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Can I watch Leigh Wood v Mauricio Lara?

Yes. The fight will be broadcast live on streaming service DAZN.

Who is the favourite for Leigh Wood v Mauricio Lara?

Despite being the defending title holder, Nottingham's Leigh Wood is the 2/1 outsider, with his dangerous and hard-hitting Mexican opponent Mauricio Lara the 4/11 favourite.

Are there any belts on the line for Leigh Wood v Mauricio Lara?

After being elevated from 'regular' to 'super' WBA world featherweight champion, this is Leigh Wood's first title defence. This is a voluntary defence.

What is Leigh Wood's record?

Wood has suffered just two defeats in his 28-fight professional career. He has lost just once in his last 16 bouts and this is his third fight in a row with a version of the WBA belt on the line.

Wood has beaten talented rivals Reece Mould, Can Xu and Michael Conlan in his last three outings, stopping all three inside the 12-round distance.

The 34-year-old has stopped his opponent 16 times in his 26 victories.

What is Mauricio Lara's record?

The 24-year-old Lara was a relative unknown after 24 professional bouts, but burst onto the world scene in 2021 when stopping world featherweight champion Josh Warrington in dominant fashion in front of a packed Wembley Arena.

Heavy-handed Lara knocked out Emilio Sanchez and Jose Sanmartain in devastating fashion last year and is undefeated since 2018.

The Mexican's professional record contains just two defeats and one draw in 28 professional bouts, with 18 of his 25 wins coming via knockout.

Who is on the undercard for Leigh Wood v Mauricio Lara?

Chief support on the undercard is the exciting and undefeated Dalton Smith, who is defending his British Super Lightweight title against Billy Allington.

The vacant WBA Inter-Contintental Lightweight belt is on the line between Irishman Gary Cully and undefeated Puerto Rican Wilfredo Flores.

Also featuring on the bill, undefeated European silver medallist Cheavon Clarke steps through the ropes for just the fifth time as a professional and talented Super Bantamweight Gamal Yafai continues his rebuild after suffering defeat to Jason Cunningham in 2021.