Josh Warrington fighting back from his lowest low

Seven months ago what was supposed to be a routine tune-up for the British fighter against Mauricio Lara turned into a nightmare and left him with a long way back

Josh Warrington fights Mauricio Lara again this weekend (Action Images via Reuters)

A boxer's lows are often as low as a sportsperson can get.

While defeat in any discipline hurts, not much can match the physical and mental pain of falling short inside a ring against a well-prepared foe.

That's exactly what happened to Josh Warrington seven months ago when what was supposed to be a routine tune-up for the British fighter turned into a nightmare.

The unheralded Mexican Mauricio Lara wasn't meant to pose much of a challenge but instead meted out a brutal ninth-round stoppage at Emerald Headingley that left Warrington nursing a fractured jaw, damage to his elbow and shoulder and a perforated eardrum.

Far more damaging though was Warrington's mental state with the loss and the unforgiving manner of it leaving him in a dark place.

“For the first six or seven weeks, I was dealing with injuries and that covered up all the thoughts of losing,” he said ahead of Saturday's rematch. “I had a fractured jaw, I had to have an operation on my elbow, I had a damaged shoulder, my ear was perforated.

“I didn’t really leave the house because I was kind of embarrassed and I didn’t want to bump into folk. For six weeks, I was recovering. Then when I went to the Joseph Parker-Dereck Chisora fight [on 1 May], that’s when it hit home because that should have been my night, that should have been my reorganised fight with Can Xu.

“I was driving back from Manchester that night on the M62 and I broke down after that, it was probably the lowest I’ve ever been. For about two weeks, I just had my head in my arse, just moping around the house, I couldn’t be bothered about anything. The garden was piled up with dog poo and I couldn’t be bothered going out and dealing with that."

Josh Warrington was stunned by Mauricio Lara back in February (Matchroom)

However, a conversation with heavyweight champ Anthony Joshua, who lost his titles to Andy Ruiz in 2019 before winning them back six months later, saw the 30-year-old from Leeds able to regain some perspective.

“I had a chat with Anthony Joshua about three weeks after it, he said something similar," he adds. "He said I would get to a stage where I would just want to get back on the horse or f*** the game off completely.

“After that week or so of moping about the house, I thought of that. I thought I can do something about this. I thought to myself am I just going to throw my toys out of the pram and keep sulking? No, I can do something about this. I just had a good word with myself.”

Warrington, who then hadn't fought in 16 months, now admits he was looking past Lara when he stepped in with him back in February.

With everything on the line this time around, there is no danger the former IBF featherweight champion will make the same mistake again.

“I've changed my approach now; the way I’ve visualised it and gone through it," he adds. "Whereas before it was just a given, I was half-thinking about the other fights after Lara… I never really pictured him being an aggressive fighter.

“Now when I think of Lara, when I picture him in my mind, instantly what I see is him coming forward, he’s got a little welt under his eye, he’s got a little cut here. But he’s blowing, he’s tired and he’s knackered. He’s trying… but I can see myself now just boxing his head off, making it very easy and showing levels.

“I’ve got respect for the guy because he’s taken the challenge. But when the first bell goes, the respect will go out the window.”