Via Scott Gilfoid: Eddie Hearn will decide with newly crowned IBF featherweight champion Josh Warrington today which way to go for his next bout following his win over Kiko Martinez last Saturday night in Leeds.
Warrington (31-1-1, 8 KOs) stopped aging fighter Martinez (43-11-2, 30 KOs) in the seventh round with a series of hits at the First Direct Arena in Leeds, England.
Winning the IBF title was the easy part for Warrington as Martinez was lucky enough to get the belt after making a miraculous sixth knockout in his last game against Kid Galahad last November in Sheffield.
What will become difficult is that 31-year-old Warrington can hold on to his IBF title, should Hearn pick a tough opponent for his next bout.
Hearn said these options for Warrington’s next fight:
- Isaac Lowe – IBF required
- Leigh Wood – ‘regular’ WBA champion
- Leo Santa Cruz – WBA ‘Super’ Champion
- Emmanuel Navarrete – WBO . Champion
Missing from that list is Mauricio Laraa boxer who knocked out Warrington in the ninth round last February.
Many boxing fans believe that Warrington owes Lara to let him hit a third fight after headbutting him repeatedly during their rematch, which resulted in the fight being halted.
Hearn doesn’t seem interested in comparing Warrington to Lara, and you can understand that. If Warrington struggles with Wood, Santa Cruz or Navarrete, he’s probably only got a game or two left in his career.
Assuming Warrington doesn’t defeat those guys by making them submit until they turn into a bloody mess, as he did with Lara and Kiko Martinez, it’s hard to imagine him beating the champions. there.
It will go down money. Will a Warrington vs Wood unification match pay more for Josh than a unification match against WBA Super Champion Santa Cruz or a match against WBO belt holder Navarrete?
If Warrington were to fight Wood, he would be fighting for his secondary 126-lb WBA belt, not the one held by Santa Cruz. Assuming this is only about money for Hearn and Warrington, not sports, Wood is probably the better choice.
It is doubtful that Warrington can beat Santa Cruz or Navarrete because those guys can fight, but headbutts are even possible. If Warrington were to play Santa Cruz or Navarrete in the US, he probably wouldn’t have escaped the headbutt without repeated penalties & disqualification.
It was a difficult decision Warrington had to make. Going for the money against Wood or focusing on the best combat by going up against Santa Cruz or Navarrete? At this point, the Navarrete was arguably the #1 fighter in the 126-lb division. So if Warrington wants to prove himself the best, he’ll need to face Navarrete.
Wood is clearly not #1, #2 or even #3 at position 126. The fact that Wood lived and died with Michael Conlan is limited tells all you need to know about the level he is at. he is fighting.
This writer sees Wood losing to these fighters:
- Gary Russell Jr
- Mark Magsayo
- Leo Santa Cruz
- Emanuel Navarrete
- Mauricio Lara
- Eduardo Ramirez
- Brandon Figueroa
- Raymond Ford
- Isaac Dogboe
- Villa Ruben
“I was so happy because it was an absolute nightmare, to be honest with you. The pandemic hit, he lost the Can Xu match, he vacated the title, we took Mauricio Lara, and everyone felt it was their fault,” said Eddie Hearn. iFL TV on how things fell apart with Josh Warrington’s career in 2021.
Sometimes you have to ask yourself how badly you want it! Broken jaw, broken arm but NEW champion of the world @J_Warrington 👏 pic.twitter.com/tH1Zx8vxNz
– Eddie Hearn (@EddieHearn) March 27, 2022
“But he stayed with it, he went to the Lara rematch, showed a lot of courage there. Hearn talks about Warrington getting his chance for IBF featherweight champion Kiko Martinez despite not winning his last two bouts.
“It was like the chance we deserved because of everything that happened to him, and he has to win tonight,” Hearn said of the title-deserving Warrington against Kiko.
“You saw the pressure he was putting on himself and the pressure he put on himself in the camp. But everything we dreamed of when he re-signed with us, and everything I sold him when we resigned him to that little hotel or whatever. Now we can do it and that’s the important thing.
“He had to go to the hospital,” Hearn said of Warrington. “We have a mandatory condition [Isaac Lowe]we have Leigh Wood, we have [Leo] Santa Cruz, and we had [Emmanuel] Navarrete. Now, we have to do our job and navigate things. Don’t think about it right now.
“Remember that he had the world championship right behind his waist. He’s a two-time world champion, and we’ll worry about that on Monday,” Hearn said.
