Leigh Wood retained the WBA featherweight title on Saturday night in the most remarkable of boxing contests, sending Michael Conlan through the ropes in the final round after climbing off the canvas himself in the first frame.
There was plenty of support for home fighter Wood at the Nottingham Arena, and the champion started impressively, but the fight looked set to be short lived when the challenger floored Wood on the bell at the end of Round 1. Conlan looked low but threw a left hand over the top to send Wood crashing to the canvas, and the resilience required by the Englishman to make it back to his feet was only built upon as the bout progressed.
Olympic bronze medalist Conlan boxed smartly throughout, picking his shots wisely with his back against the ropes, as Wood found occasional success to the body of his undefeated opponent but increasingly looked to be forcing punches and chasing Conlan, who was stunting any momentum that Wood could create. Still, the hometown fighter continued to press forward valiantly.
Wood, 33, put together his best spell late in Round 10, somehow rallying to the body of Conlan after eating a series of bruising left hooks. The champion then scored a debatable knockdown of his 30-year-old opponent – who believed he had simply slipped – in the 11th frame. The enthralling contest came to a head early in the 12th and final round, when Wood sent Conlan tumbling through the ropes with a vicious knockout. Conlan was subsequently taken to hospital in an ambulance and was later confirmed to be “conscious and stable”.
Re-live round-by-round updates from Leigh Wood vs Michael Conlan and all the undercard action, below.
