#Leigh Wood

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Leigh Wood KOs Josh Warrington in 7th - 10/7/2023

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Frontproof Media 2023 Boxing Awards: Who is the Fighter of the Year?

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By Hector Franco

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Published: January 03, 2024

2023 turned out to be a stronger than anticipated year for the sweet science. The most demanded fight of the last half-decade finally took place in Terence Crawford’s demolition of Errol Spence. Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia showed that boxing doesn’t need to have world titles on the line to sell PPVs.

Amanda Serrano took it upon herself to demand women be allowed to fight in three-minute rounds, with championship fights for the full 12. Showtime’s relationship with boxing officially came to an end. YouTube and social media influencer boxing seem like they’re here to stay, and Saudi Arabia has established itself as a destination for boxing for the foreseeable future. 

The sport is still plagued with the same issues of inactivity, especially when it comes to fighters on the pound-for-pound list. Also, boxing’s fractured nature, ranging from promoter to state to country, has managed to keep the subject of drug testing a work in progress. 

Frontproof Media will look at some of the best of 2023, highlighting those who deserve and have earned recognition. 

Fighter of the Year

Terence Crawford and Naoya Inoue

In most instances, the Fighter of the Year award is one-sided, with one candidate ahead of the pack. 2023, however, has had multiple fighters worthy of the crown, and this year, we will give credit to two fighters who separated themselves as the best in the sport, pound-for-pound. Those two are Terence Crawford (40-0, 31 KOs) and Naoya Inoue (26-0, 23 KOS). 

It’s rare for Fighter of the Year honors to be awarded to two fighters; however, it’s happened a handful of times. Over Ring Magazine’s century-plus history, it has given the prestigious award to two pugilists five times, most recently, in 2020, when Teofimo Lopez and Tyson Fury won. 

Crawford dismantled Errol Spence over nine rounds for the undisputed welterweight championship in one of the greatest pay-per-view performances in history. Although Crawford only fought once in 2023, how he dismantled Spence on boxing’s biggest stage in a legacy-defining match gave him an upper hand over nearly every other fighter. 

After becoming the undisputed bantamweight champion, Inoue moved up to super bantamweight and faced what many considered to be the number one fighter in the division, Stephen Fulton. Much like Crawford’s victory over Spence, Inoue demolished Fulton over eight one-sided rounds in one of the premier showings of the year.

For some, what gives Inoue an edge over Crawford is that he also earned undisputed status by stopping Marlon Tapales in 10 rounds. It’s difficult for any fighter to have back-to-back near-perfect performances, and while Inoue didn’t look as good against Tapales as he did against Fulton, he was still dominant. 

Crawford and Inoue earned distinctions as undisputed champions in two weight classes in 2023, and no matter who you have sitting at the number one spot, they both showed the gap between them and everyone else. 

Honorable Mentions: 

Amanda Serrano

Amanda “The Real Deal” Serrano (46-2-1, 30 KOs) did more than most in 2023. She became the undisputed featherweight champion, defended her titles twice against two top opponents in her division, and became the first women’s boxer in over a decade to fight in a scheduled 12-round championship match featuring three-minute rounds. 

Few fighters in the sport are as active as Serrano, and at 35, she continues to push herself physically as she plans to head back into mixed martial arts in 2024. 

Leigh Wood

The United Kingdom’s Leigh Wood (28-3, 17 KOs) is arguably boxing’s most exciting action fighter. His fights deliver drama and knockouts. In 2023, Wood lost his WBA featherweight title to Mauricio Lara, then won it back in a rematch just a few months later. He ended the year by stopping two-time featherweight champion and UK rival Josh Warrington. 

Typically, when a fighter suffers a loss, it will disqualify them from Fighter of the Year consideration, but, in Wood’s case, he was able to avenge his loss in a short time and garner arguably the biggest win of his career. Wood may not be on any pound-for-pound lists, but he is one of the best featherweights in the world and is always a must-watch whenever he fights. 

Fight of the Year

Amanda Serrano vs Erika Cruz

02/04/2023

2023 doesn’t have a fight that was levels above the rest, such as Diego Corrales vs. Jose Luis Castillo or Marco Antonio Barrera vs. Erik Morales. Still, there were numerous outstanding fights, all within the same range of excitement. Several fights could have been given the Fight of the Year award depending on the day asked and which fight was seen most recently. Ultimately, Frontproof Media chose Amanda Serrano’s war with Erika Cruz (17-2, 3 KOs) for the undisputed featherweight title as 2023’s Fight of the Year. 

For pure, sustained action from start to finish, Serrano’s battle against Cruz is difficult to top as the two traded for nearly every second of each round at the Madison Square Garden Theater. A headbutt in the third round added to the fight’s intensity, with blood coming down from Cruz’s hairline, leaving her face, opponent, and the ring drenched with blood. 

Ironically, the fight could be used as an argument for continuing to have two-minute rounds in women’s boxing, as Serrano and Cruz each threw nearly 1000 punches over the 10-round distance. Much like Serrano’s fight with Katie Taylor in 2022, her fight with Cruz is perfect for showing skeptics of boxing in general how exciting the sport can truly be. 

Honorable Mentions: 

Luis Nery TKO11 Azat Hovhannisyan

02/18/2023

Devin Haney WUD12 Vasiliy Lomachenko

05/20/2023

Jaime Munguia WUD12 Sergiy Derevyanchenko

06/10/2023

Rafael Espinoza WMD12 Robeisy Ramirez

12/09/2023

Knockout of the Year

Junto Nakatani wko12 Andrew Moloney

05/20/2023

Japanese two-division champion Junto Nakatani’s 12th-round knockout over Andrew Moloney for the vacant WBO super flyweight title was the perfect amalgamation of all facets of the sweet science. The left hand landed by the southpaw champion was perfectly timed, and with Moloney moving into the punch, it was brutal and, in the immediate aftermath, a bit frightening. 

Honorable Mentions: 

Yoenis Tellez WKO10 Livan Navarro

12/15/2023

Zhilei Zhang WKO3 Joe Joyce

09/23/2023

(Featured Photo: Naoki Fukuda)

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Cooties (2014)

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nature, I guess

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Natalie Wood - Romy Schneider - Vivien Leigh

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Demon in the Wood (Leigh Bardugo)

His throat was raw. Because I was screaming when they pushed me under.

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all of the thingys for cooties by the way!!:D

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same energy

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—Supergirl, “We Can Be Heroes” + “Reign”

[theanticool]

Leigh Wood drops Mauricio Lara in 2nd. Great timing on the uppercut as Lara drops down to evade. Wasn’t really hurt but it definitely landed clean. Good work thus far from Wood. Controlling the fight.

[frontproofmedia]

Leigh Wood vs. Josh Warrington Fight Preview

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By Sina Latif

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Published: October 06, 2023

Leigh Wood vs. Josh Warrington Fight Preview

WBA featherweight world champion Leigh Wood (27-3, 16 KOs) and Josh Warrington (31-2-1, 8 KOs) will collide in a 12-round world championship main event at Utilita Arena in Sheffield, England, this Saturday night.

35-year-old Wood will be making the first defense of his title since regaining it in May against Mauricio Lara, scoring a unanimous decision win against the Mexican with a masterful performance to nullify Lara and redeem the stoppage loss back in February.

Wood truly introduced himself on the world stage and came into his own when he took the WBA title from former champion Can Xu in July 2021 at the Matchroom HQ Garden in the 12th round, with 16 seconds left of the contest. This upset was followed up with a fight-of-the-year candidate against Michael Conlan, coming back from a first-round knockdown to score a 12th-round stoppage win at the Nottingham Arena in the most dramatic of ways.

Warrington, meanwhile, is looking to return to winning ways, coming off a majority decision loss to Luis Alberto Lopez in December 2022, when he lost his IBF title. Warrington had previously regained the IBF title against old rival Kiko Martinez in March 2022 with a spirited 7th-round stoppage win, winning the same title he had previously held between 2018 and 2021.

Prior to the Martinez and Lopez fights, Warrington had engaged in his own pair of duels against Lara in 2021. Warrington’s first title reign had come to a halt when Lara stopped him in February 2021 before their rematch was declared a technical draw after a clash of heads in the second round.

The “Leeds Warrior” is now looking to become a three-time world featherweight champion. Had it not been for Warrington’s most recent loss to Lopez, this fight against Wood would arguably not be happening. There would have been lesser urgency to make the fight happen, and there would have been a desire to make the fight bigger and bigger, “marinate” the fight until one loses and plans are derailed. That is the norm in boxing today. The fact that Warrington has defied that norm and secured this showdown coming off a loss is a testament to his marketability and star value in the UK.

Prior to the Lopez loss, Warrington was being built as a star in Leeds. He is one of the few genuine stand-alone ticket sellers in the UK. Despite his ninth-round stoppage loss to Lara in 2021, Warrington was being built as a real force on the world stage. He has limitations as a fighter, and his team will be aware of that. Still, with the fiercely passionate Leeds support and the fact that he can fill out any venue in his hometown, he has always been a very marketable fighter. All Warrington had to do, on his end, was continue to win and remain the A-side in any contest with his involvement. Furthermore, by continuing to win, he could remain at home.

The fact that Warrington now finds himself fighting Wood in Sheffield suggests that things have changed for the Leeds fighter. He has made certain allowances that may not have previously been made in order to take up this challenge, a suggestion that he is grateful to be receiving this opportunity as a challenger.

Today, if a fighter suffers even a close loss, as was the case for Warrington against Lopez, he must rebuild. It can be a long road back. The fighter may have to embark upon a confidence-building process on their journey towards another title shot.

Warrington does not need to go through all of that, even when coming off a defeat, and that is a testament to his marketability. Despite coming off a defeat, he can still put bums on seats.

Furthermore, it is also due to the fact that a Wood vs Warrington showdown always seemed inevitable, and following that Warrington loss, now was the chance to make it happen. Unless one or both men were brutally knocked out or viciously dismissed, the possibility of these two meeting in 2023 was always quite strong, with the rumors becoming stronger over the past couple of years.

The fight may not have the same appeal it would have if both men were on equal standing heading into the fight, but Warrington and his handlers will argue his hunger and motivation to re-attain his standing at the peak makes him more dangerous than ever.

Speaking on Dazn Boxing’s Face Off, Warrington certainly believes being the underdog on this occasion works in his favor:

“It’s fuel to the fire. I’ve been underdog since I come on to the scene, but there’s something about when you tell me that I can’t do it, there’s something about it that gives me another little spark.”

There will certainly be doubters of Warrington that will need to be proven wrong, with two defeats in his last four and a technical draw, making some believe that he is on the slide. At 32 and with his recent results, it would be easy to believe that Warrington’s prime years have passed. However, as Warrington would be sure to point out, Wood is actually three years Warrington’s senior.

However, in contrast to Warrington, Wood has yet to show any signs of slowing down or faltering at this level. Yes, Lara stopped him just like Warrington did, but he conclusively and impressively out-boxed Lara in the rematch.

As a result, Wood is rightfully confident.

Although Warrington has faced some big punchers such as Martinez, Lara, and Lopez, while speaking on Dazn Boxing’s Face Off, Wood stated he believes he can get a stoppage win over Warrington and explained why he is different from the other punchers Warrington has faced: “I’ve seen him (Warrington) get hurt, I know he’s tough. I don’t believe the people he’s been hurt by hit as hard as me and, at the same time, are as calculated as me, so they might land a few shots, but are they good finishers? Have they got good setups? I don’t think they have.”

“I think Lara is a big puncher,” Wood continued. “Not calculated. He’s not a great finisher in the sense that he gets one hurt and knows what he needs to do to set it up. He rushes sometimes.”

These two men are at different stages in their respective careers, irrespective of their ages. There is, in fact, a high likelihood that Wood is now better than ever, and all of the years he spent on the domestic scene, winning some and losing them, equipped him for this world-level Indian summer in his professional career.

One thing is for sure: this will be a tough outing for both men. Wood had to control Lara, a wild operator, forearms and elbows used with punches in equal measure, and Conlan, a fighter with great counter-punching skills and technique, who dropped Wood in the first round and forced the Nottingham native to quickly adapt. In comparison to those men, Warrington should be a more straightforward beast to control, yet that does not make the probability of a violent and action-packed contest any less likely. For Wood to tame Warrington like the aforementioned men, he won’t be leaving the fight feeling confident and fresh. To beat a man like Warrington is sure to leave its mark. The Leeds Warrior is a brave and tough man and will never quit.

With his recent loss and up-and-down recent form, this may be the last chance saloon for Warrington and his world title ambitions. Many would argue that Warrington got this shot due to his marketability, which he can count himself lucky for.

With victory, Wood could potentially be involved in unification fights, which could enhance his legacy.

Warrington has long had American dreams. With victory and becoming a three-time featherweight world champion, Warrington would resurrect those dreams.

(Featured Photo: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing)

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Demon in The Wood/Rule of Wolves/Ruin and Rising/Amen Omen by Ben Harper.

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hearing Matt do Caleb’s accent is like hearing Essek do Caleb’s accent and now i don’t know what to do with my hands

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Alina x The Darkling - Shadow And Bone

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