Leigh Wood is ready for anything that McDonnell throws at him
18.02.14
By @john_evans79
The saying goes that you never get a second chance to make a first impression. On Saturday night, many viewers of Sky Sports will get their first glimpse of Nottingham’s Lee Wood, (11-0, 4 KOs) and, if things go the way Wood expects, it won’t be the last time they see him.
The 25-year-old fights the unbeaten Gavin McDonnell, (10-0-1, 3 KOs), for the vacant British super bantamweight belt and is eagerly counting down the hours to his first major title opportunity. Not that the opportunity to fight for the famous Lonsdale belt after just eleven fights has taken Wood by surprise.
“I won’t say a surprise because although I thought Barry [stablemate Barry Awad, otherwise known as Kid Galahad] was gonna defend it three times to win it outright., looking who’s around he wouldn’t have been able to do that without fighting me,” Wood told Livefight. “He’d have had to have a rematch with Jazza Dickens or fight Gavin and then rematch Jazza or fight me. Either way, without fighting me he wouldn’t have been able to do it without waiting around. He got that shot at the European title and then I kind of knew. I thought I’d be fighting for the Commonwealth or the British title. I’m glad it’s the British though. That’s the one I want.”
Wood fights out of the Ingle Gym in Sheffield and, since the Yorkshire boxing community is quite close knit, it is something of a surprise to learn that his and McDonnell’s paths have never crossed. While he hasn’t been able to gain any first-hand knowledge of the challenges that will face him on Saturday night, Wood has been able to carry out a watching brief and is extremely confident that he is more than capable of dealing with anything McDonnell might throw at him.
“I’m from Nottingham myself. I train in Sheffield but I’ve never sparred with him or his brother but he’s been on my radar for a while. I pretty much knew that our paths would cross as he’s a super bantamweight and he’s unbeaten. I’ve watched him fight for the past few months. I followed the Paul Economides fight and watched the Josh Wale fight too [McDonnell won unanimous decisions over both].
“Without going too much in to it I don’t think there’s anything that Gavin McDonnell can do better than me, without sounding big headed or anything. He’s sometimes quite negative. He likes to jab, has a tight guard and likes to back up a lot, I don’t know why. No matter what Gavin McDonnell turns up on the night, I’m confident of getting the win.
“We’re prepared for anything. I have good sparring and we change every round. We cover all styles so some will come forward, some go back and some like to stand and fight. No matter how McDonnell wants to approach me, we’ve not trained for specifics. We’re prepared for the unexpected.
Looking at what Gavin McDonnell usually does, there are no problems there for me.”
Wood will have to produce the performance of his short professional career if he is to take the Lonsdale belt. To date, he has faced just one opponent with a winning record [Genilson de Jesus Santos, who was (23-5) when Wood stopped him inside three rounds last November] and McDonnell is a massive step up. Wood is relishing the prospect of facing a fighter with ambition and is positive that the time he spent as a member of the Team GB boxing team will stand him in good stead once the leather starts flying.
“I haven’t really boxed anyone yet but I’ve had good experience as an amateur. I boxed at an elite level and had success so obviously I can handle kids throwing back at me. I’m looking forward to a bit of a test.
“On my record I have four stoppages out of eleven but every time I’ve boxed at super bantamweight or featherweight I’ve got them out of there. All the other kids have been a lot heavier than me. Kids that are throwing back are more susceptible to getting hit rather than journeymen who come and cover up, move, hold and do whatever they have to do to get through the fight and get paid. If Gavin McDonnell somehow manages to land a shot on me, I will be hitting him back. I can’t wait.”
Lifting the British title would open up a wide range of possibilities. As McDonnell is Wood’s first ‘name’ opponent, there would be plenty of attractive opponents available for defences of the belt. The Commonwealth title is another realistic target and – should Galahad continue his current rate of progress – 2015 could see Wood in a similar position to the one he is now, with Galahad leaving behind the European title for his gym mate to fight for.
“I’m a bit of an unknown at the minute,” he said. “I’m not in the limelight as they say. The super bantamweight division is red hot with Quigg, Frampton and Barry hot on their heels behind them. I’m one step behind them.
“I’m not overlooking this fight, I never overlook anyone. I’ve been asked in a few interviews if I’m training harder for this fight but I train hard all year around for every fight. I’ve always given 100%. I’m always improving and over the two and a half years since I’ve been at the Ingle Gym I’ve improved so much. I’ve dedicated myself completely to boxing and I hope it’s gonna show in this next fight, just like it’s shown in the last three or four. I’m so excited to be in this division. I could have stayed at featherweight but I think super bantamweight has the most interesting fights.”
Limited tickets remain on sale priced £30, £40, £60 and £120 for VIPs and are available from Matchroom Sport on 01277 359900 and at www.matchroomboxing.com
The bill will be shown live and exclusively on Sky Sports HD