- Accidental clash of heads stops fight in second round
- Lara unable to continue due to cut caused by collision
Josh Warrington had promised that he had to win this fight to keep his professional career alive. In the end not even he, Mauricio Lara or any of the 20,000 supporters inside Headingley Stadium could have envisaged what would happen on a raucous, but ultimately disappointing night in Leeds as the fight was ended by an accidental clash of heads.
This night had been littered with encouragement and optimism for Warrington’s career moving forwards, not least given the fact he had shown almost unprecedented determination and focus all week in the run-up to this featherweight rematch with Lara in his hometown. “I’m absolutely gutted,” Warrington said afterwards in what was perhaps a sentiment shared by everyone inside a stadium that has seen so many great sporting moments over the years.