It’s another huge Saturday night of boxing with big shows on both sides of the Atlantic, live on DAZN, and Chris Oliver previews the action
Boxing betting tips: Saturday action
1pt Leigh Wood to win in round 7-12 at 3/1 (bet365, Paddy Power, William Hill)
1pt Ryan Garcia to win by decision at 5/2 (bet365, Unibet, BetVictor, Quinn Bet)
Leigh Wood v Josh Warrington
- TV Channel: DAZN
- Start time: 18:00 GMT, main event approx 22:30
- Venue: Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham
Leigh Wood and Josh Warrington finally run it back in Nottingham after their thrilling first contest in October 2023.
On that occasion in Sheffield, Josh Warrington dominated with his high-octane approach and was well ahead on all three scorecards before a sudden turnaround at the end of round seven. Wood walked his man onto a big right hand before following up with a brilliant combination and Warrington went down heavily.
Warrington (32-4-1, 8KOs) beat the count but was on very unsteady legs and had his back to the referee when the official waved it off. Debate raged on about whether he should have been allowed to continue, especially between the two combatants, and they finally get to settle the score this weekend.
While their initial fight was for Wood’s WBA featherweight belt, the rematch at super featherweight is more about bragging rights as both men are past their best and their days in world title fights look to be behind them.
Wood (28-4, 17 KOs) is the favourite to come out on top again but only just, with 9/10 available for the Nottingham man and 11/8 the top price you can get about Warrington levelling the score.
Both men have been pretty inactive since their first bout, with Warrington going on to lose a wide decision to Anthony Cacace at this new weight before a low-key points win over the mediocre Asad Asif Khan last April, when he didn’t look great at all.
Wood also fought Cacace in his only outing since and he was stopped in the ninth round in a fight that was fairly close up to that point, so while he didn’t go the distance with the Belfast man, you could say he was more competitive with him than Warrington.
Wood has the slightly shorter layoff to overcome at nine months but it’s hard to know what either man has left at this stage, and it could be all about who has faded the least.
Wood certainly struggled to make featherweight for their battle nearly two and a half years ago and that showed in his performance, so he looks better suited to this higher weight than Warrington. The latter struggled with the size and physicality of Cacace on his debut at super featherweight and he will be the smaller man in the ring again here.
Warrington was back to his busy and aggressive best for much of his bout with Wood and he will be a real handful again if he’s in the same sort of mood. However, his two subsequent performances suggest that his once-famous engine doesn’t purr like it used to and that takes away his best asset.
The atmosphere was electric first time around as their two big fanbases made huge amounts of noise and it is likely to be the same again here, which could spark another fast start from Warrington. However, whether he can maintain that at 35 is questionable and a worry for his supporters.
Wood has earned a reputation as one of the most exciting fighters in Britian with his come-from-behind victories and he could register another one here. As the bigger man who is much more comfortable at this weight, the big-punching veteran can stop his man again once Warrington begins to slow down.
It is 17/10 for Wood to win by stoppage again but I don’t see him doing it early and I prefer the 3/1 about him winning in the second half of the fight, just as he did first time around.
Ryan Garcia v Mario Barrios
- TV Channel: DAZN
- Start time: 23:00 GMT, main event approx 01:00
- Venue: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas
In the early hours of Sunday morning in Las Vegas, Ryan Garcia bids to win his first world title when he challenges Mario Barrios for the latter’s WBC welterweight strap.
Having shown so much promise on his way up the ranks, Garcia has pressure on him now with the very real prospect of not fulfilling his undoubted potential and failing to become a champion.
He is brilliant on his day, as we saw when stopping Britain’s Luke Campbell with a crippling body shot and when he upset the odds when dropping the previously unbeaten Devin Haney three times on his way to a decision ‘victory’ in April 2024.
However, the latter result was declared a no contest when Garcia failed a drugs test, and he looked out of sorts when losing on points to Rolly Romero for the WBA title in his only outing since. He also seemingly quit when stopped by Gervonta Davis in their 2023 blockbuster, so he still has plenty of questions to answer despite this being his 27th outing as a professional.
Barrios (29-2-2) is nowhere near as flashy or brash as his opponent, but he does the basics well and has sound fundamentals.
Having lost to the aforementioned Davis in 2021 (TKO11) and Keith Thurman in 2022 (UD), this will be the fourth defence of his title, but he has failed to shine in drawing his last two bouts.
A split draw with the average Abel Ramos isn’t world championship form and he needed a late rally against a tiring Manny Pacquiao, who hadn’t fought in nearly four years, to scrape a draw with the 46-year-old.
Barrios has a good jab and hits hard enough to get the respect of Garcia, but he isn’t the quickest and the difference in speed could be what wins this for Garcia.
The challenger has lightning-quick hands, which is highlighted by one of the best left hooks in the business, and he is also the puncher here with plenty of power in those fists.
Barrios has a good chin, though, and takes some budging, so Garcia may have to rely more on his speed than his power to prevail.
It’s 8/15 for Garcia to bounce back with a victory, and 21/10 about Barrios, and I am willing to give the younger man another chance to show us what he is capable of.
Garcia didn’t look in great shape for the Romero fight and has spoken about having a very poor camp for that one, while he insists things have gone much better this time around and that preparations have gone great now he’s being trained by his father.
If that is the case, then he should have too much for the Barrios, who has done well to hold on to his title for this long but his days as a champion look numbered.
It’s 6/4 for Garcia to claim a stoppage victory and while that isn’t out of the equation, the sturdiness and durability of Barrios could mean that the challenger will need the judges to be finally crowned a world champion.
Posted at 1400 GMT on 20/02/26
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