5 Live Boxing with Steve Bunce - Wood v Warrington: Last Man Standing
Episode Date: February 19, 2026Will it be repeat or revenge? Buncey heads to Nottingham to speak with Leigh Wood and Josh Warrington ahead of their highly anticipated rematch on Saturday night. He also catches up with promoter Eddi...e Hearn and "Meatball" Molly McCann. Plus, we hear from Ismael Davis and Bilal Fawaz as they prepare to battle it out for the British title.
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This is Five Live Boxing.
Now, I love a rematch.
I love a rematch of a little bit of need or a little bit of nastiness.
And this rematch on Saturday in Nottingham has that.
It is a real old-fashioned British rivalry rematch with nastiness.
Lee Wood and Josh Warrington.
This is the story of the fight.
I'm Steve Bunce and this is Five Live Boxing.
So I'm joined by Eddie Hearn in this familiar surveillance.
And Ed, could I just say it's been fairly confrontational week for you this week
with some of the stuff you've been having with Dana White.
Well, and you, Bunsey.
Yeah, the pair of us have been against it.
Let's not duck out of that, you know.
But yeah, just another rivalry.
I mean, I suppose it's what we're used to, and now it's Eddie V Dana,
which I'm, you know, I think it's a nice little, it's got a good ring to it.
I know who sells more tickets.
Can I just say that?
Well, yeah, well, they're doing it in front of about 100 people at the moment.
So I think out, you know, I've got a lot of time for Dana, right?
But once he, you know, he made the terrible mistake of going down the,
yeah, well, Eddie works for his dad line, which is generally what people say
when they've kind of run out of ideas or frustrated, but this is after one month.
Normally it takes me years to get that kind of comment.
You know what I'm saying?
So, yeah.
Maybe he saw it somewhere on a video and decided to copy it.
What I find staggering is that, I mean, I don't want to dwell too much on the Zouffer belt.
And she says, Zufa, what is Zufa?
I don't want to dwell too much on that.
I don't want to upset too many people because I'm simply doing that without even trying to upset people.
But it was quite ridiculous to attack.
I mean, if he puts on a massive show and he gets 63,000, as you said, he might do that at some point.
Oh, he will.
He will.
Yeah, but right now, like, you know, ultimately, you've done.
got, you know, Max Kellerman, I mean, the whole thing is, like, and I know that, you know, you guys,
some people are more independent than others. If you're working for a broadcaster, I understand,
there is a tendency to exaggerate on the quality of the night. It's just what happens,
but you still can't go out there and say that Callan Wall, she's a very nice young man,
is the next Roy Jones. And Max Kellerman telling you that a Jagber against Charles Martin is
really a part of the rebirth of the heavyweight division. And this is, you know, I mean,
And if I was putting on those shows, I'd get crucified.
You would, actually.
So I would.
Yeah, you would.
And if you said that stuff alongside putting on those shows.
But also, like, when you talk about vision,
the vision that we've had globally has never been done before.
But having a new belt, it's got nothing to do of vision.
It's just about a control.
They don't want to play by the rules of boxing.
They want to run the rules.
And they want to run the game.
So this is our belt.
You have to do what we say.
But because they, you know why?
because they couldn't operate in that mad world of boxing
because it would do their nothing.
Don't get me wrong, it does my name.
I don't blame them, by the way.
They're going, no, no, we don't want,
we'll just do our own thing,
we'll start our own rules,
we'll control everything in-house,
just like they're done with the UFC.
And listen, it's worked with that.
Wherever it works in boxing, proof, you know, time will...
It's worked with that, but, you know,
has had some problems over the last couple of years
that we're going to pay fighters, let's get that right.
Well, that'll be the next problem that they've got with a UFC,
because what they're going to be paying...
They're going to make some mad offers for some fighters.
To get people over.
And what that will do is the UFC guys will look at those numbers and go,
hang in a minute, you're paying $5, $10 million for him.
I'm getting $7.50.
I've just sold out the T-Mobile and done $500,000 pay-per-view by us.
What's going on?
I mean, over the last 50s, I didn't want to talk about this,
but I've got to just mention it.
Over the last 10, 15 years,
I was always amazed when I'd see these figures of what they were making
and what they weren't making and what we were making
You know, them quite comfortably saying that we're this and we're that.
And I just thought, just look at the sums.
None of it added up.
They were making peanuts those guys.
You know, UFC, look, what a business, right?
TKO.
I mean, they're making hundreds of millions because they take all the money.
They don't pay the fighters correctly, in my opinion.
So, you know, you've got a situation where, you know, say of the revenue pot,
the fighters are getting 15% of the pot.
Whereas in boxing, they're getting 80% of the pot.
Sometimes, 140% of the pot.
Unfortunately.
we like pots to don it up
Ed we finally got this one back on
Lee Wood against Josh
Warrington
in your in your view
why did it take so long
because I thought we might have had this seven and a
monocity and ego you've seen it
you know we've seen it so many times before
where it's like when there's a great fight
which it was
and when there's a swing
either way you know
Warrington's controlling the fight all of a sudden
he gets dropped
I've actually watched it back
I think it was a little bit
harsher on Josh Warrington
than I remembered at the time
because I've seen the reverse angle
no you know the angle where you can see his face
so where I'm sitting on the night
I can just see his back
and he's staggering
and he made the classic mistake
of turning his back
and not turning around in time
but if you look at him
his face when he goes back to the corner
he's looking at his training
he's going on he's composing himself
to turn around like
and he wasn't like
you know the eyes weren't rolling around
it was like
From that angle.
It was still his fault.
Yeah, yeah.
Because he didn't turn around.
But he turned around at 8 and went, I'm ready, and they went, no.
Now, his mistake.
But generally, what happens in a controversial stoppage is in a great fire.
Yeah.
The rematch is massive.
Oh, even bigger.
So three, four, five months later, I'm saying, right, guys, let's run it back.
You know, Lee Wood's like, I don't want to run it back with him.
And then it's like, all right, well, I want this much money.
And it's like, guys, like, I paid you a lot of money for the first one.
It's sold out.
but kind of like the money in the pot
is the money in the pot.
So the money's going to...
No, if he wants to fight me again,
he's got to take a load less
and I want more money, right?
Then it breaks down.
Then we revisit it six months later.
Someone says something in the media
and it's like, you know, don't worry.
And then Wood goes to fight Kikachi.
And then someone else goes another way.
Yeah.
And then eventually, you know, they both come to me
and say, right, we've had our fights.
What's next?
I go, guys, why don't you just rematch?
Oh, well, yeah, blah,
I said, like, come.
on.
You're at the stage now.
This is what we call this show.
Last Man Standing.
The loser goes.
He's done.
The loser of this fight, in my opinion, will never fight again.
And that loser might not have been facing the end of a successful or the end of his proper career.
Had it been made two years ago?
Maybe.
Yeah.
But ultimately, now there's more on the line.
I think it's like, you know, you can never really wait too long unless both guys just aren't what they were, which this is.
is not the case.
I'm not saying they're in their absolute prime.
But they're both, yeah, they're both physically in great shape.
They're both bang up for this fight.
And these are the kind of nights.
And, you know, jokes aside from the Zuffer stuff, this is our bread and butter.
Like Nottingham Leeds, sold out, electric atmosphere, sweet Caroline, big grudge match, domestic
battle, two former world champions, two kind of generational great fighters from this era, if you like.
Of good fights.
Exactly.
Dozens.
So, you know, plus British and Commonwealth Championship on the line, Fowaz against Davis,
world championship on the line, Sandy Ryan, Leo Atang, Tier Aiton, Molly McCann.
I mean, it's a proper night of boxing.
It's a good, but before we hear from the two boxes, have you seen much of the two boxes this week in the build?
Have you seen, Josh?
Have you been close to Lee?
No, I've got a sense of them.
I've got to Notting them today. I just saw Lee Wood outside.
It looks very healthy.
I mean, I put super feather.
I like it.
I like healthy.
I mean, feather would.
was not good for him.
I've got to say,
I saw the pictures of Josh Reinsen.
I mean, he's always in shape,
but he looks absolutely beasted.
I mean, he looks in phenomenal condition.
He's had the old Barnett done as well,
which I'm very jealous about.
You know, he's got a few more follicles in there as well,
what you're not.
So look, you know two consummate professionals.
Yeah.
Both in the absolute physical peak condition
they can possibly be in,
ready to put it all on the line for us on Saturday night.
Now let's hear from the two fighters now.
Just one second, Ed.
It's completely different.
Even the fight would be different.
The build-up's different.
He said a few disrespectful things.
I thought to myself, I thought,
he's just being disrespectful to get the rematch.
But then I looked back, I think he did a few things before the fight.
Personal things, you think?
Yeah, like, he posted something about me going off to use the drip after the way in,
which I've never done in my life.
I sometimes wish I did because I really struggled to read it sometimes.
But yeah, I thought, so it wasn't even because to get a rematch.
I don't know why that's what he does, that's how he is,
or maybe he thought he was going to win.
I don't know.
How much different is it?
It's really hard for people to understand.
It's only £4 people to say,
but for you,
if that £4 pounds is like a...
It's enormous, isn't it?
It's a lot.
It's a lot.
I don't want to go in time which I used to court,
but...
Don't have to, we all know.
Yeah, you can see my face today,
well, make a feathery.
I think it's half dead,
but even now, like, I feel...
I'm not as in full of any joke,
it's still hard to me,
but I feel I'm living.
Do you regret that the...
I know there was all sorts of reasons
why it didn't happen.
Do you regret the reason?
rematch didn't happen six months after the first fight?
Or you'd fight in the words now?
From my point of view, that was always in my back pocket.
That fight was always there.
Same with the Conlon fight, if I need to revisit that.
But I don't think I wanted him the opportunity, to be honest,
but with Josh, it was always in the pocket.
So I could go on and head towards challenges,
and that fight was always there.
And I always wanted to say, with boxing,
when I finish on a high, this is the fight for me,
what's going to bring the best out of me?
Do you like the nastiness that exists,
the sort of how personal it's become?
Because it seems like, I mean, do you like it or is it just part of our business?
I don't like it, but I think I need it.
I think with the Conlon fight, he brought the best out of me.
And I think with this fight, again, it's going to bring the best out of me.
It hasn't come.
I've been so switched on and been nailing the sparring, like, I just think it brings the best out of them in.
Maybe I need that.
I need that fire there.
A bit of disrespect you need.
Maybe, yeah.
I've had a good look back over your career.
You've been disrespected a lot, really, haven't you?
Yeah.
Whatever way you want to call it,
people have sort of taking you a little bit for granted.
I mean it nicely.
I find that ridiculous.
Yeah.
It's good though,
it's good to be on the radar sometimes,
the only on my career.
And then when the world title came around,
I got picked because of that unlucky,
which was a blessing.
No chance to beat Conlon.
That's it.
No chance to be anybody, really?
You keep beating them.
You keep beating them, Lee.
Because I adapt to win.
I don't box the same against every fire,
and that's what you're going to do
to get to that level.
Now, I was talking to Carl Frot,
and he was saying that you were talking to him
about how you used to go to his fights
when you were a bit young.
Just tell me a little bit about that
because he's like the king of his town.
Well, he might be the king of his town.
It turns out that you might be the king of his town.
Just don't tell Carl.
He said, are you the sheriff?
He's the sheriff?
I'm not sold in it for you.
Yeah, so my friend of the Taz,
his dad, Mark,
he was coached me from a kid,
took me on pads and he used to take Carl on pads
from when he first turned pro.
He was to go to a weights gym
and everyone used to look around watching
I was only really young
and I watched Carl go from turning pro
to winning world title
and most of the fights been in the arena
and you went to those nights
yeah a quarter of it, half of it
and the first time
it fully filled it and won his world title day
I was there
Pascal fire
yeah, Pascault fire
and I was in the crowd screaming for him
and looking around thinking one day
I'd love to do this one day
and I've done it numerous times now
and it still doesn't get any less
satisfying when I walk out to that stage
and I look around and I think
Amio
it's time to go
but I said this as a day
I said I'd love to share that with someone
so Matcham this time got me some sunglasses
to come out over with the camera on
No wait so you're going to ask
I got a sunglasses on but
I got the camera to look around
to view the scene and share that with people
You know what that's a really good gimmick
yeah I like that and just finally
how does it end on Saturday night
after you've taken the sunglasses
after you've taken the robe off
when it's just you him and a reference
and a capacity ground.
How does it end?
No, I can't really,
I don't know what he's been doing
and I don't know what he's been preparing like,
but I feel like I'm going to get him out of there
and it's going to be a lot faster than last time.
I'm really sharp, I'm really devastating.
I know what I need to do,
I know what it brings to the table
and I've got an answer for it every single thing he does.
So that was Lee Wood.
Now let's hear from Josh Warrington.
I can be calm now because, you know,
I've got a chance to be right.
You seem calm.
Yeah, I'm very calm, very, very relaxed.
I think, you know,
I didn't mention it,
physicality then, but I think more than anything is my mindset this time around going into it.
Not saying there was Rocky going into the first fight, but it had been in a very good place upstairs.
Do you think that the extra break, I mean for a rematch, such a great fight generally, it won't take this long to come around?
But do you think that extra break has maybe helped you a little bit?
Maybe put you more at peace with what you've got to do on Saturday?
Yeah, I think so.
No, I think so.
No, I don't think so. I don't think so.
I think obviously a bit more maturity.
I think that going off the catch a fight,
I didn't realize that some of the things I would have carried in upstairs.
So, yeah, I'm glad that we've had a bit of time
and it's a bit of time for me to reset myself as well.
Those things you're carrying upstairs,
they can ruin things on the night, can they?
Your body can be unbelievable condition,
but those things in your head, that baggage can ruin your fight.
Fights can be won and lost on the water of the ring.
I'm sure you've seen that many times.
You can see people who are world champions in the gym.
It comes to the fire week, you know, they start dipping day by day.
And then the ring walk, when they get to the change rooms and all that stuff,
just eats away at them.
And it's a big pressure cooker in there.
You know, the old event, the old occasion,
they can eat weight people, but it's where for me, it sets me on fire.
Some of your fights, Josh, over the years,
and there's almost two many they mentioned.
There's like 7, 8, 9, 10 that are memorable, they're incredible
to watch from my side of the boats, which is the safe side.
of the votes.
Do you watch them back
with the wins and the losses?
Can you watch them back
and can you watch specifically
this one back?
Can you learn anything
by re-watching
what happened in the first fight?
Yeah, definitely.
Definitely.
There's times when I watch it back
and I get a bit annoyed
and frustrated with myself
because, you know,
times when I potentially
I didn't make a little and go
or times we went
for a shot a little bit wild
and we didn't work on it like that.
You know, approach,
maybe being a bit silly or whatever.
But obviously
the seventh round where I got leaping in the last 10 seconds
should have been a far lot tighter
but is what it is and
you know obviously it's easy to watch the winds back when your arms
getting raised and you've had like a bandtom
oh yeah phantom fight or you come out in it too
not good for Carl but yeah but yeah there's
you know the first two rounds fantastic but yeah
I do struggle to watch you know the loss is back
but I think when it's all said and done
then you just appreciate it do you?
And two things.
First of all, the extra four pounds, fantastic.
It's just game-changing.
You know what?
How ridiculous is that?
You know, Rees Mold will vouch on me here.
I remember saying to Reese quite specifically,
he won at training sessions.
I said, I said, I'm going to finish the circuit together.
And I turned around, I said,
this is my last one at February.
I've done it in February, but the extra four pounds isn't so much.
But, you know, it's not a lot of me, so not of you.
But for the little fellas, you know, it's a lot way.
Yeah, it's a big mountain, and I feel so much better.
I'm refreshed.
And finally, drag you back to the line,
the final question.
I'm going to drag you back to that night.
You were angry on the night that it was stopped.
When you look back and watch it, are you still angry it was stopped?
Yeah, I understand, yeah.
You're like, that long as you're solid.
Yeah, that's it.
Yeah, just I feel that I should have been given the benefit the doubt.
But then again, if it won't stop and make you get him distinct,
then we wouldn't be in this position.
That was then.
Why do you beat him this time?
Why don't him this time?
Because certainly,
going into the fight physically
on one unbelievable condition
know the things that could have done
a lot better, even though I was winning
on all judges score cards in the first
fight, you know, it's been
two and a half years and
these not even spring chicken.
These things, sometimes
you know, you get into a
nearer to 40.
Sometimes the only way to find out is
on the lights.
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It's 2009 and we're in the German mountains. A man straps himself into a car on the world's
most dangerous racetrack. He whispers to himself, it's time to put my balls on the dashboard.
As he starts the engine. In 15 minutes, he's in an ambulance, unconscious. In 15 years, he's a billionaire.
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drive to survive. This week on Good Bad Billionaire, How Toto Wolf made his billions.
Listen wherever you get your BBC podcasts. So that's the two boxes, Ed. I mean, they say what
they have to say, and that's the way it is. I think there's a lot of, I think there's a lot of
animosity. Hates may be too strong, but there's certainly some good animosity there. I'm delighted
that Sandy Ryan has getting another crack. Vacant title, one of Katie's old titles. We forget
Sandy's only had about 12 fights. She's like a 65th veteran. You know, when she started out,
She wanted to jump him really deep early against Sanchez, I believe it was, or Farias.
And she was a tough fighter at the time, Faris.
She got beat in a very close fight.
She rematched her straight away and won, then went out and kind of found herself becoming a world champion in Cardiff,
and then jumping into a massive fight with Michaela Meyer away from home for a lot of money,
and then going and having to rematch her again on ESPN in two fight-a-year contenders.
So she's sitting there now, what, with three losses?
I mean, the record doesn't really explain the achievement.
So this is to become a two-division world champion.
Not going to be an easy night against the Mexican as well.
She's always, always in great fights, and we expect another one on Saturday.
This, I'm still calling it like middleweight class.
Bill Al-Faraz is a character.
I mean, it's been around 15, 12 years, 15 years or so.
And of course, Ishmael Davis is, well, I'm not even quite sure what he is.
What a terrific fight.
Do you know what?
Two such likable individuals.
I mean, first, the Ishmael story is extremely motivating for people who,
you know, come from that world,
who look for a way out
and keep on battling away for a break.
But then you go to Bill Al-Fa-Waz,
how can you not love the guy?
You know, I mean...
He trumps this male story.
Yeah, he does, really.
He does, and that's hard to do.
Stagland.
Really hard to do.
I think this fight is a lot closer
than people think.
You know, Fowaz is a real competitor.
He's awkward, he's skilled.
He can punch a bit as well.
Strong, strong man.
And he's coming off a string of tough fights.
Yeah.
You know, going back to the Josh Kelly fight on a week's notice,
then Bochuk, then, Agiarko.
I thought he edged that fight, but it was a very close fight,
and then a really tough fight against Sam Gilly.
And he goes again in a tough fight.
Four hard fights.
Yeah.
So I see this as a 50-50 fight.
Giveish the slight favourite, but a really good old-school British and Commonwealth classic.
All I'm going to ask you is, where's the rematch going to be?
Which one?
Of that one, probably one.
The trilogy fight was.
Who knows?
Who knows?
And then the rematch for that.
Listen, Ed, Ed, thanks very much for your time.
And try and stay away from arguing.
I can't help it.
You know what it is?
It's like, you know, I'm trying to be nice.
And then someone says something,
and then I've got all these YouTubers coming up to me going,
he said this, what you've got to say?
I don't know any other way, Bunsey.
I've missed it.
You know, now me and Frank were on a friend.
So I've got to have a row with someone.
So as Ed walks away, let's hear from Ishmael and Bill Alfavaz.
I had a very, very dark environment.
I had a very dark place that I had to go through.
And I thought I was over.
But I came out, I climbed out of it.
And when I came out, I came out with something very, very tangible
that I never had when I went down in there.
So I came out with something that propels me forward.
And that's why I'm here.
Killer instinct.
The will to survive, the feeling that it's not enough.
I want more.
Now, all those years ago, when you were in our studio, whatever it was,
and you were throwing the Superman punch from your amateur day,
That seems like 12 or 15 years ago.
And I'm still here.
I'm still throwing it.
And I'm still doing it.
And I'm beating up people that are 15 years younger than me.
It's crazy.
The thing is right.
But you've been 27 forever.
I've been 27.
Yeah, look at my family.
I'm 37 years old.
And look at me.
37.
You've looked the same
all the time I've known you.
I take care of myself.
You do take care of myself.
I don't put crazy stuff into my body.
I'm more of a clean kind of person.
And can you win the British Times?
Can I win it? I've done win it. Are you being serious?
I've dismantled everything in front of me.
Why wouldn't I win it? I know how to beat the sky.
Trust me, I would make this fight an easy fight.
Because I've seen him, I've seen what he has,
and he's not in my caliber.
I read somewhere that once you win the British title,
you're going to just go back on your app and start working as an Uber driver again.
Is that true on Sunday morning?
You're going to have a Sunday morning?
on and off at least.
I'll have the Sunday morning off, but the bills roll on
because if I don't work, I have to pay for the car
out of my pocket.
So I'm going to go home, celebrate, and then after that I'll work.
I have to do the Uber.
You're wanted upstairs.
Thank you.
Everything happens for a reason.
All their moments brought me to this moment now.
And it feels good being a British and Commonwealth champion.
But you know what I have.
You're a real role model now.
You know what I mean about that.
You're a real role model now.
And you know what it is?
Do you know what it makes me feel like I want to do?
Get more belts.
So there's more work to be done, and I just got to keep going.
Now, this fight, Bilafo was, it's a hard fight.
It's tricky because he's unconventional and he's strong and he's tough.
You know the stories.
I know he's a good talk and all the rest of it.
But he's a tough man and he's dedicated.
And by the way, his backstory, it's not bad.
It might be as good as yours.
It's good.
It's good.
It's good.
It's good.
It's good.
It's good.
You know what it is.
It's good.
But I respect his backstory.
and what he's trying to do, but boxing doesn't love you.
Boxing not love no back story.
That's the true.
Boxing loves the fight, so.
And it doesn't even love that.
Boxing, you have to get in there and fighting.
You need some luck.
You need some breaks.
It's an unforgiving sport, so the talking will be done on Saturday night
and we'll see who does the walking.
And those fights that you lost, the three fights you lost,
those are the fights that made you, whether you like it or not.
And then the Sam Gilly 12-rounder.
You've had some really good, really good hard fights.
against good guys.
You're totally a different man
than the man you were two or three,
two and a half years ago.
You're season now, is?
Yeah, yeah.
You know, you're getting,
you're getting close to complete at the moment.
That's true.
And you know what it is?
It's just mad because I'm such,
compared to the guys in the game
that I've done all the amateurs
and travel the world,
I'm kind of a novice.
Still, in a bizarre way,
I know exactly what you mean, yeah.
But I've done 12 round
and then I've done another 12 round,
and I've done another a 12 round, except for these parts.
Against the odds, against the odds, against the odds.
Maybe I might have lost, but I learned along the way.
So Saturday night, I do everything that I'm thinking of.
You're going to see a spectacular performance.
So that's Ismail Davis there.
That's a really hard fight with Bell Alphoaz.
And looking at Ismail, though, he knows how hard it is.
And Ismail could go on to become a giant role model.
Great also to hear from Josh, obviously, and from Leewood.
Now, I'm with a man that knows Lee Wood very well.
Now, he's not one of those guys that lies about something
so that he was there when Lee Wood was born.
Listen, I whisper, we've got guys in the boxing business
who claim they were in, like, the walled when the baby was born.
They've got to get themselves with the guy forever.
I'm talking to, I'd like to call you Five Lives, Charlie Slater,
but it's Nottingham, it's the Midlands.
It's just so many times when we've done a show.
You've been off.
When the last time we did a fight, you were covering Manchester United, I think.
What a great lesson by the way of us.
Yeah.
Charlie, you know, you've known Lee along the show.
while. I just spent a bit of time talking to him. How is he this week compared to how he was
traditionally when he was really struggling to make? As he said, it's only four pounds, but for
them it's a life. Absolutely. No, I think I look at him this week and his cheeks aren't quite as
sallow as they have been before. Less skeletal. Yeah, exactly. There's more in his eyes as well when
I look at him. How crazy is that, Charlie? Yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely crazy. And it's only the
fight game that will show you things like that. You don't see a footballer cutting weight before Liverpool
plays Man City.
or anything like that.
Imagine if you did.
I know.
Imagine if they had to peak all the time.
It's just an idea.
I mean, I'm an Arsenal fan,
so maybe that's the way forward.
Let me send a note to myself.
Note to, I'll get older Mikkel later.
There's probably a camera in it,
anyway, they'll stick it in the changing room
or in the sauna.
Somewhere.
So, yeah, I mean, this week,
when I look at him in the eyes as well,
they're there,
and in previous fights
when you're approaching a fight
where he is having to cut weight,
and it was difficult
when he used to have to cut to that feather weight
all those years ago now as well,
look back.
But now this week,
he's got that personality
about him too. Sometimes you'd speak to him two or three days
before a fight and there wouldn't be a lot coming
back. I'm on your side. Exactly, but
but this week there's still plenty days
he's got a lot to him this week. There's still that little
bit of banter to him and as a whole
I just think he's really zeroed in
on the task at hands. He quite likes a rematch.
You'll remember obviously Lara
and I think you know sort of Lee
and Ben and people like that I think
they take real pride and pleasure in
exploring where they went wrong
and how they can fix it and I think they've figured that out.
Especially Ben.
I mean, Ben, their whole thing is about science.
They like to apply science.
So they'll analyse every single part of that fight
and see where they could have improved it.
And there was a lot of room for improvement.
Absolutely.
I think in the sixth round he was really struggled.
Even in the seventh round, the round of the stoppage.
He was, I rewatched earlier.
I mean, he was struggling.
He was behind on all three score cars.
One was tight, two were wide.
And Josh was starting to, I don't want to get two over top.
He started to enjoy himself a little bit, Charlie,
when the punch is finished.
I rewatched the fight earlier on.
and Josh had Lee in trouble in the third round, the sixth round,
and at times in the seventh round, just before,
and he looked comfortable.
Lee pulled that punch from the gods.
And then five shots.
Absolutely, my goodness.
And they were punishing five shots that put,
I mean, if the canvas wasn't there,
Josh would have fell and kept falling.
Still be falling now.
And he might still be falling now.
It sets up the rematch beautifully.
And I just know that there's so much on the line as well.
Lee's admitted to me on record that it might be his last fight,
and I think he wants to go out on a high.
So if he wins this fight,
I think there is an opportunity for Lee
to go out on that high
in front of 8,000 of his adoring hometown supporters.
You can't write that, can you?
Those are the scriptures can't write.
Well, I know one thing will be there,
and if he wins,
you can get up in the ring and do the interviews.
I'll stay down at ringside with Stacey Copeland,
with Ritchie Woodall and with Ronald McIntosh.
And you can go up and do that heavy work,
and I tell you for why,
because the last time I got really,
in trouble. I got kicked out of the wing by the security
because I was standing in the wrong place. So if it happens this
time, it's Charlie's fault. Charlie, thanks
very much indeed. We'll see you on Saturday.
Looking forward to it. Charlie would be with us on Saturday
night. Thanks very much to him. Thanks so much to everyone else.
Now, I was trying to get out of the building
and I got rugby tackled.
She might be smaller than me, but she's meaner than me.
No, I was trying to track her down a day. Molly McCant here.
Molly, first of all, how are you? I haven't spoken to you.
I haven't spoken to you. I haven't seen you since I was about
10 pints of Guinness in.
I know. When I interviewed you and Tony Bellier
after your debut, after you'd been kicked.
That was ridiculous, aren't it?
How you been? You're settling in?
Settling in.
I had a really good debut.
I had a real big lesson in my second fight.
I took a bit of...
I think I'm just going to knock everyone out
and it's all going to be this easy.
Be it a Bolly McCann.
Yeah.
And in the second fight, I learnt a lot of good lessons.
And then I've had the whole of December off you now.
I had such a heavy...
Let your body rest?
I had such a heavy year
from having an MMA fight to retire.
and to learn a whole new sport and two big fights.
So I took December off to it for this, like rest this.
And then on me, I went away to Tenardee for two weeks, right?
As I'm on the plane landing and I touch the tarmac, January 10th, get a message.
Yeah, Eddie wants you on this card and the one in Liverpool after it.
And I was like, oh my God, I've got five weeks to get ready.
So it's actually been probably one of the best camps in my life.
that you haven't got time to get in your own head.
So I'm really good sparring for this camp.
I've done a little bit.
I've been seeing some of the pictures of your sparring by.
And I'm just really excited that in MMA,
everything's like every punch is to kill.
And in my last fight I realised,
my lesson was you can't do that in boxing.
Touch, move, touch, touch, a bit more power.
So that's what I can't wait to have a go at.
To go through the gears a little bit more,
this camp instead of going like into fifth and staying there.
Brendan Young, we used to talk about,
Just go for a walk.
Have a little walk.
Just touch him with a jab.
Just touch him.
Five seconds, 20.
You've done 30 seconds.
Just have a little thing.
Yeah.
But I needed that opponent.
I needed that opponent to switch that on.
Because in the first fight,
I got that.
But in this fight,
she'd come for me straight away.
So I was like,
I meet fire with fire.
Of course you do.
Apart for when you were kicked in your first fight.
I know.
When Samma, you restrained yourself.
I don't know how I was in her.
I was like, I felt, I was in the street.
I was getting ready to throw her on it.
Do you know?
You actually smiled.
There was a look, you went,
she just kicked me.
What's she doing kicking me?
When I watch it back, I see your face.
It's Josh Taylor by you.
And I just see you go,
Yeah, we do.
Because I have the amount of times I've watched it.
It's a good time in a moment, suddenly,
because it's been a sort of low the last couple of years.
It's been some big fights, but not a lot.
Suddenly the MVP people are around
and there's a little bit of new interest
and some big fights are being made, lots of mix up.
So it's a good time for you to make a bit of a footprint this year.
I think so.
I think after this
the next fight will be
for eight rounds
and I think I'll have two eight rounds
and then go for a 10 at the end of the year
so he wants me to have five or six this year
and then start pressing on for
I've always dreamed to win the British title
I think to me to have that Lonsdale belt
is just like
You know what you seem really calm
seem a bit calmer than normal
I quite like that
I can't fire in the belly ice and the mind
and I think
if I want a fight
and I know I've got to get up for it.
I'm there, but if I want a box,
it's not really proven to anyone else.
It's proven to myself.
Just go and do what you do in the gym on the night.
The calmer I am, the more likely it is
that you can think underpress, and react and respond correctly.
That's exactly what it is.
Morley listens, it's a pleasure talking to you, mate.
Always, and I'll see you soon.
I see her on Saturday, and then maybe in April.
Definitely in April.
Yeah, I'll take it for some scrann.
I'll come to your place.
I've been before.
I've been before.
You weren't there.
It's good food as well, I wasn't joking.
And I was in Faye Camp, I was caught in weight.
I wasn't cutting weight.
Enjoy, guys.
So thanks to Meatball, Molly McCann there,
who's sounding and looking more and more like a fighter.
So Wood and Warrington,
memorable, savage, shocking, brilliant fights.
They've had dozens of them.
Remember Josh Warrington beating Carl Frampton,
2018 in Manchester?
Remember Lee Wood, shocking everybody in Eddie's Gardering
and beating Canso when he had no chance of doing it,
stopping him in the 12th round.
And then that victory over Michael Condon in the 12th round,
and then their fight together,
then their fights with Maurizio Lara.
They have delivered and delivered,
and they'll do the same on Saturday.
Now, the fights start on Sports Extra from 7
and then on 5 Live from 10,
with me and the team.
Wood, Warrington 2.
It is the rematch.
I'm Steve Bunce, and this is 5 Live Boxing.
Five Live Sports.
Nations. Rugby's greatest
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