Leigh Wood and Michael Conlan go back to purse bid again
The WBA has been doing a lot of moving around the pieces on the chessboard. They have been steadfast in mandating fights to consolidate belts, and one such belt that was the first casualty was the Interim title. This brings us to a contest between WBA ‘regular’ featherweight champion Leigh “Leigh-thal” Wood and Michael Conlan.
The WBA mandated the fight in August and gave both teams time to reach a deal before September 27. The teams could not reach an agreement before the deadline, which caused the organization to set up a purse bid for October 11. The WBA would grant both sides an extension in hopes of ironing out a deal. However, since no deal has been reached, the WBA has now ordered a purse bid for November 1.
On July 31, Wood (23-2, 15ko) fought under the Matchroom Boxing Banner on DAZN. He shocked the world by defeating Can “Monster” Xu in a dramatic fashion. Leigh-thal took the fight to Monster from the moment the bell sounded. What made the victory even sweeter, it was bumped up to main-event status after Conner Benn’s fight with Adrian Granados was moved off the card. Moreover, he scored a sensational stoppage in the twelfth round, becoming the first fighter to stop Xu.
Conlan (16-0, 8ko) has been displaying his talents under the legendary Top Rank banner since 2017. The 2016 Olympian won the Interim title after defeating former IBF junior featherweight champion TJ Doheny on August 6. Conlan looked impressive fighting in front of the hometown crowd en route to a twelve-round dominating unanimous decision.
The WBA has been doing away with the interim title. Moreover, they have been scheduling fights with the former interim titlists in an attempt to crown only one champion. Once the purse bid situation is resolved, and the fight gets made, the winner must fight the divisional ‘super’ champion, Leo Santa Cruz, next.
3kingsboxing will continue to monitor this situation and provide any further updates.
By: Garrisson Bland
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