Some fighters are intended for big moments.
Some show up at big moments unexpectedly, making the most of a key opportunity, earning the right to another in victory.
This Saturday, we get one of each in an interesting showdown at featherweight (DAZN, 1 PM EST).
30-year old Irishman Michael Conlan (16-0, 8 KO) won bronze at the 2012 Olympics, Gold at the 2015 World Amateurs, and appeared again at the 2016 Games only to make a controversial exit. From launch, his professional career has been navigated toward championship glory. Results in the ring have dran mixed reviews but the intention was stardom,
33-year old Leigh Wood (25-2, 15 KO) didn’t see Olympic glory. There were no global amatuer titles. He was stopped on his way up the pro ranks by Gavin McDonnell and lost a decision to Jazza Dickens two fights before a touch of the unexpected. Last July, Wood delivered a career-best performance to hand China’s Can Xu his first defeat. It earned Wood the WBA’s secondary belt at featherweight and opened the door for another big chance.
We are in a period of transition at featherweight.
Gary Russell’s lengthy, if largely absent, WBC reign was ended by Mark Magsayo (24–0, 16 KO). Leo Santa Cruz (38-2-1, 19 KO) has reigned as the primary WBA titlist for years, almost as an honorarium because he hasn’t fought at the limit in over three years.
WBO titlist Emanuel Navarrete (35-1, 29 KO) pleases crowds but has yet to truly follow up on a pair of Jr. featherweight title victories over Isaac Dogboe in the ring. Veteran Kiko Martinez (43-10-2, 30 KO) won the IBF title from Kid Galahad in a surprising upset in 2021. Mauricio Lara (24-2-1, 17 KO) stunned unbeaten Josh Warrington in early 2021 and has emerged as a TV friendly option with a title shot certain sooner than later.
The division hasn’t been this wide open in a long time. A case can be made there are fighters at Jr. featherweight, not to mention bantamweight titan Naoya Inoue, who would be at least even money if not favored over the best featherweight has to offer right now.
It is a moment with a void at the top.
It is a moment of opportunity.
Conlan or Wood will take a step toward taking advantage of that opportunity. Given recent results, nothing should be taken for granted.
The favorite is obvious. Conlan is supposed to win and, if he does, he is in line for a showdown with Santa Cruz if the WBA continues to seek consolidation of its titles. The fallout from the catastrophic decision in Mykal Fox-Gabriel Maestre saw the sanctioning body make genuine proactive steps to clean up their chaotic title scene. As that awful decision gets farther away, the follow through is what matters.
The winner this weekend should either be mandated to face Santa Cruz or Santa Cruz should vacate to eliminate one extra mess at featherweight.
What Conlan is supposed to do only matters until the bell rings. Galahad, Warrington, and Russell were supposed to win too. The flying of leather ended somewhere else.
Wood has the chance to make assumptions folly. He wasn’t supposed to beat Xu either. It wasn’t long prior to their fight that Xu-Warrington seemed to be a destination. They didn’t get there. Conlan may not get there either and it would make for a solid boxing story.
The unexpected is never a bad thing.
The unexpected is an element that keeps fans always coming back.
Conlan-Wood is the sort of fight that could only gain significance over the next year as the division continues to settle on its future.
Cliff’s Notes…
Fans who remember can’t help but be interested in the pro debut of the son of Raul Marquez, Giovanni, this weekend. Papa Marquez had some memorable scraps in his day before becoming a fixture at ringside as an announcer…The developments in the murder of Hector Camacho are long overdue but still likely a relief for the family. Closure can’t happen without answers…Dmitry Bivol should be judged as a man, not a nation…Winning Time, HBO’s new show on the Lakers, looks like a gem…Chocolatito Gonzalez was bacon in the gym early in the week after his masterful dismantling of Julio Cesar Martinez. The second act continues and we are all blessed for it…Tyson Fury-Dillian Whyte has the ticket sales to mark it a genuine event no matter what happens in the ring. Heavyweight stadium shows are always welcome.
Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, a member of the International Boxing Research Organization, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.
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