Leigh Wood and Michael Conlan put on quite arguably the best fight of 2022 on Saturday.
Conlan sent Wood to the floor in the first round and had him on the ropes in the second. Wood survived the onslaught and made it into the championship rounds. Heading into the 12th and final round, Conlan appeared to be three minutes away from winning the WBA (regular) featherweight title.
Instead, Wood knocked out Conlan, who got sent through the ring, and the Englishman retained his belt. But concern immediately shifted to Conlan, who was stretchered out of the arena and to the local hospital. Conlan passed a series of tests and is already out of the hospital and will be ok. One person who was very impressed with Conlan's performance was former WBC cruiserweight champion and DAZN analyst Tony Bellew.
“This has made my morning! Well done champ.. Amazing performance but more importantly than ANYTHING is that you have your health and your [sic] ok,” he tweeted.
He then reflected on the fight, which Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn described as the ‘most dramatic’ bout he had ever seen live.
He wrote: “Right a couple of things… I had Conlan a clear winner in the fight.. The only reason my card git [sic] close at the end was cos in round 11 a round I had Conalan [sic] winning clearly I had to score 10-8 for Wood for a knockdown that never was imho. It also changed the fight for Wood, pt.1
“That knockdown gave him the belief in his power that he lacked all night throughout the fight, he wasn’t getting the reactions from Conlan that he hoped for.. I take NOTHING away from Leigh Wood cos he showed what top champions all have in common and that is that never say, pt.2
“Never attitude or the willingness to give up on yourself! Even though he was rocked and hurt several times throughout the fight! The knockdown (even if it wasn’t a KD) spurred him on and I believe gave him the confidence he lacked all night! I’ve sen [sic] a lot in this sport , pt.3”.
The former world champion also thought he had seen enough to predict that Conlan would one day also hold a world title belt, saying: “But that last night is possibly the most remarkable finish I’ve ever seen! Both fighters are a credit to the sport and I wish nothing but success for both of them! I believe Wood is the most dangerous fighter in the division and Michael Conlan will be a world champion soon enough
“On another note I believe boxing needs another safety precaution adding to it, We need maybe an extra 3ft around the ring so that falling out and hitting the floor from that height isn’t possible. I was close to that last night and it truly frightened me to see Conlan like that.
“The security lads and the medical staff of the BBBoC acted quickly and brilliantly last night. Everyone involved with the fight behaved exemplary they really did. studies show The damage is made worse by waiting to get the fighter to the hospital! This didn’t happen last night”.