Josh Warrington vs. Mauricio Lara ends in technical draw

Josh Warrington didn’t get the redemption he desired. A clash of heads in round 2 caused a serious cut over Lara’s left eye, resulting in a technical draw.

Mauricio Lara shocked the boxing world in February after stopping former IBF featherweight champion Josh Warrington in nine rounds. The rematch didn’t go as smoothly.

Warrington (30-1-1, 7 KOs) told FanSided that he was ready to rectify the one blemish on his record, but the second fight ended in a disappointing technical draw.

Warrington came out strong and his spirits were buoyed by the hometown Leeds, England crowd at Headingley Rugby League Stadium. The crowd roared for ‘The Leeds Warrior’ who came out firing from the opening round.

Warrington, who’s 30 years old, looked like a younger man as he punished Lara to the body. Lara (23-2-1, 16 KOs) never looked hurt, but the 23-year-old from  Mexico looked off guard from the opening round. Lara dropped the first round and he didn’t look much better in round 2.

Don’t expect to see Mauricio Lara and Josh Warrington in a trilogy bout after their technical draw

Warrington continued his high-octane start in round 2, but the action came to a halt after Warrington’s and Lara’s heads collided.  They finished out the round, but Lara’s eye was badly damaged.

Lara’s corner worked on a massive cut over his left eye, but the doctor took a look and decided it was too bad to continue.

We agree. It was a nasty cut and it only would have gotten worse.

The doctor called a stop to the action. By rule, the result goes down as a technical draw. The Leeds crowd and both competitors were disappointed, but there was no other option.

It’s hard to tell what happens next. It’s unlikely that Warrington and Lara will meet in a trilogy. There’s not an audience for it and both boxers will probably move on to other opponents. It wasn’t the outcome that anybody wanted, but these things happen.

Lara and Warrington will try to find more success in the featherweight division.