Anthony Cacace vs Leigh Wood betting tips: Can The Apache cut down Wood in their IBO world championship clash?

Anthony Cacace defends his IBO world featherweight title for a fourth time to his newest challenger, Leigh Wood, who gets the home advantage at his local 10,000-capacity Nottingham Arena, in the main event of a Queensberry Promotions show, broadcast live on DAZN.

Northern Ireland’s Cacace is in the form of his life, while Brit boxer Wood is coming up a division to challenge for his first title at featherweight, having reigned as a two-time featherweight world champion.

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Cacace is the favourite at the bookies, at the time of writing, but “Leigh-thal” is known for his dramatic last-round knockouts, which is why promoter Frank Warren is adamant this is going to be a fight of the year contender. 

Tale of the tape: Anthony Cacace vs Leigh Wood

Anthony Cacace: Can The Apache add another scalp to his eight-fight win streak?

Anthony Cacace has been going from strength to strength ever since his sole career defeat to Martin J Ward for the British and Commonwealth super-featherweight titles back in 2017.

Since then, he has rebounded to scalp the likes of Sam Bowen, Leon Woodstock, Michael Magnesi, Joe Cordina and Josh Warrington, while picking up the British belt that eluded him the first time, as well as IBO and IBF world titles.

The Belfast boxer became the first man to defeat Italian Michael Magnesi in 2022, ripping his IBO world super-featherweight title away from him, which is a belt once held by Jeff Mayweather 30 years ago.

Anto defended his strap three times, with wins over Damian Wrzesinski, Joe Cordina and Josh Warrington.

When he stopped Cordina in May 2024, he also captured the Welsh wizard’s IBF world title in the process, but gave it up not long after in order to fight Josh Warrington, because the governing body refused to sanction him as a challenger despite being a two-time IBF featherweight champion.

Cacace’s decision not to be tied to the IBF’s strict rules has paid off for him, firstly with his defining unanimous decision win over Warrington, and now with his next lucrative fight against Leigh Wood, a fantastic domestic showdown headlining live on DAZN.

Leigh Wood: Can Leigh-thal reign as world champion in another weight class?

The Nottingham hero gets the home advantage in his first title fight up at 130lbs. Now 35, Wood had a few of his early fights above 130lbs, but his first championship challenge, to Gavin McDonnell in 2014, was for the British super-bantamweight belt, ending in a sixth-round knockout defeat.

He won the Midlands Area, Commonwealth, WBO European, British, WBA Regular and WBA world titles, in that order, all at featherweight.

To become a world champion, the heavy-hitter stopped China’s Can Xu in the dying seconds of their 12-round championship clash in 2021, behind closed doors at Matchroom’s HQ in Essex.

He upgraded his WBA Regular belt to the full world title with another dramatic 12th round stoppage, this time against Michael Conlan in 2022. In his beloved Nottingham Arena, he was dropped in the very first round by the Irishman, but clawed his way back to return the favour in round 11, then knocked Conlan flying out the ring in the most dramatic finish with just one-minute to go in a fight where he was trailing on all three scorecards.

He was dethroned in his next defence by that pesky Mexican Mauricio Lara, who loves to upset British boxers on UK soil. Heavy-handed Lara knocked him out sensationally with a single left hook to the chin in round seven. Gutsy Wood got back to his feet, but trainer Ben Davison threw in the towel.

Wood remarkably came straight back to the rematch just three months later and made the necessary changes to defeat Lara and reclaim his black belt.

Wood then defeated Warrington in a thrilling all-British showdown in 2023, where he was once again trailing on all the cards before scoring another spectacular KO. Warrington overwhelmed Wood with his swarming style, until the bigger puncher landed a right hook in the seventh that wobbled the legs of the “Leeds Warrior” to turn the fight on its head in an instant, something that has become his trademark finish.

Wood has almost made a career of coming from behind with a single fight-ending punch.

Anthony Cacace vs Leigh Wood: The key factors

Cacace is the bookies’ favourite because he has been on such an impressive run, whereas Wood has lost twice in the last five years, which doesn’t sound like a lot, but he has been involved in a few wars.

He was dropped against Conlan, then Lara, then cut above the right eye from a Warrington punch. His last four fights will have added many miles on the clock, and he has been absent from the ring for over 18 months.

He moved stables from Matchroom to Queensberry, so there may have been a few politics delaying his next fight, but he has also admitted to dealing with a few “niggling injuries”, in his own words, which is further proof of the mileage he has clocked up.

Cacace is fresher, on-form, he’s the defending champion with all the momentum and confidence behind him, but Wood is an ever-present danger, who could win at any given point with that equalizer of his.

FIRST’s top tip for Anthony Cacace vs Leigh Wood

Cacace to use his long levers, aggression, superior size and combination punching to stop Wood is currently 5/2 at Ladbrokes.

Extra tips 

Cacace to wear Wood down and stop him in rounds 7-12 is 9/2 with Ladbrokes.