Josh Warrington is gearing up for a shot at revenge on Saturday night when he takes on Mauricio Lara for a second time, although the Leeds Warrior admits the pressure is definitely on this time.
Warrington, 30, was on the wrong end of a shock loss against the Mexican six months ago, succumbing to a ninth round TKO. The defeat was devastating for Warrington’s career and he knows that another at Emerald Headingley Stadium this weekend would likely be catastrophic.
“I always feel the pressure. It doesn’t matter about the fight, there’s always pressure," he said in a press conference.
"I’ve said it many times, boxing isn’t like any other sport. Nothing is ever scheduled, it’s not like tournaments are scheduled, you have to keep on winning in order for your career to progress.
"I know that if I slip up, I’m not looking at world titles anymore, it’s been a long time to climb back up, I’ve been in the sport for 11 years and there’s always pressure.
"Fighting in front of a big audience, it brings pressure, even though it’s a benefit, but we’re thriving for it."
Heading into that first fight, Lara was a relatively unknown 22-year-old prospect but Warrington insists he is much better prepared for him this time around.
“I know what to expect, I know what Mauricio brings, I know about the power in his punches, I know about how he moves, how he’s going to approach it,” he added.
"That has been helpful to visualise it and to prepare for our gameplan, so that’s been a bit different.
"I think more than anything, I’ve been coming off a load of injuries, it took some time to get back to 100% recovery, but we’re flying, we’re ready to go now, so, all being said and done, we get the result done and win this weekend."
Lara, meanwhile, believes that things are definitely personal between the two featherweights this time.
“Warrington said that I got lucky," said Lara. "Believe me. There’s no luck in boxing.
"I’ve never won anything with luck. I won with hard work and a lot of discipline. Of course, since I beat him I feel I’m the champion.
"Like they say in my town, I’m a champion without a crown. It sounds nice and I think I’ve earned it with hard work. I want to be number one in the world and I’m going to achieve that.
"I’m a very humble person. He won my respect in the first fight because he was number one in the world, but that’s no longer the case. He doesn’t respect me and he has said many things about my dad. He made a mistake, believe me. He met a friendly version of me and look what happened.”
Lara: 5/4
Warrington: 4/6
Draw: 20/1
