RAC Arena: Perth, Australia
Well, make way for the three-division champion, two-time Olympic Gold Medalist; as Vasiliy Lomachenko once again wears a strap. Becoming the new IBF lightweight champion after picking apart George Kambosos Jr was never in doubt. If not for the gritty toughness of “Ferocious” it would have ended before the 2:49 mark of the 11th-round. While undisputed status is always in play, the road to undisputed for 135-has taken a real first step. And it might just happen before the calendar turns to 2026.
Loma notoriously takes a round or two to make all his reads. But on this night he turned back the clock to his old NO-MAS-CHENKO days. Instead of sitting back, he gathered all the info he needed coming forward, changing levels. The aggressive tactic had Kambosos continue to just go back and come in. An easy thing to read for the fighter with the best in-ring IQ.
His footwork as slick as ever, helped his left hand work like a trip-hammer; never missing. According to CompuBox the Ukrainian outlanded Kambosos 175-40. As the clinic came to a close after a pair of left hooks to the liver, dropped Kambosos to a knee. Which came simultaneously as the Australian’s father throwing the towel in.
Post fight the fighter said:
“After I rest a little bit, we can talk about the future”.
Meanwhile his promoter Bob Arum said:
“I have this other fighter, Shakur Stevenson… Every serious boxing fan will be watching that fight in awe, between two-great technicians fighting for a unified title”.
The Road To Undisputed Is There… But It’s A Tough One
Coming into this scrap with Kambosos, a lot was made of the age of Lomachenko (36), and the year away from boxing to fight against Russia. Well, the division is younger now, and chock full of talent on the rise. Not only in Stevenson, but Keyshawn Davis, William Zepeda, and of course the dangerous Gervonta Davis. Plus Emanuel Navarrete is on his way up from 130.
Obviously the Tank scrap would be the most talked about and anticipated one. But if things play out according to the tea leaves would be the last chapter in the equation. But could and would Floyd Mayweather and Arum work together? This time they might take the back seat to their fighters demands for immortality.
While any other matchup against this version of Lomachenko would be ultimate chess matches of slick fighters, it wouldn’t be the case against TANK. If Lomachenko used this forward aggression he could get cracked by a Davis uppercut. One of the deadliest strikes in all of boxing.
If Loma decided to hit and move he might remain upright longer, but Davis does have a decent chin, and Loma isn’t carrying dynamite in his gloves. His finishes came at the end of lots of punches in bunches. His footwork and combos might frustrate Davis, but again, they won’t finish him.
And for all of Davis’s issues, he is a better defensive fighter than people give him credit for.
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