Wood, staggered by a one-two at the end of that round, responded positively, however. The hometown fighter continually timed his right cross to perfection over the course of the next four rounds, backing up Lara and building a healthy lead.
The 34-year-old continued to impress in the seventh round, although Lara began to sneak through some left hands and ultimately dropped Wood with a hook, late in the frame.
Wood was able to stand before the referee’s count was up, but as the champion prepared to resume boxing, the towel came in from his corner.
When later asked by DAZN whether he was okay to continue, Wood said: “Yeah, I’m a fighter, you know? I want to go until I can’t see anything anymore.
Mauricio Lara (right) dropped Leigh Wood with a left hook late in Round 7
“[But with the knockdown], I made a mistake and I paid for it.”
Wood’s promoter Eddie Hearn revealed that his fighter has a rematch clause to face Lara again, if he so chooses.
“A massive thank you to everyone,” Wood added. “I appreciate you coming out tonight. I’ll be back.”
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The main event marked Wood’s first bout since his fight-of-the-year contender with Michael Conlan at the same arena in March 2022. That night, Wood recovered from a heavy knockdown at the bell in the first round, going on to knock out Conlan in the final frame.
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