Some are calling Saturday night?s ESPN fight between Vasyl Lomachenko and Guillermo Rigondeaux the most skilled matchup in years, if not all of boxing history. Lomachenko won two Olympic gold medals. So did Rigondeaux. It?s the first time in the sport that double gold medalists have faced each other, and that storyline has excited plenty of people (and have split the boxers who are making predictions).
While Lomachenko and Rigondeaux might be the most skillful fighters in the world today, that doesn?t mean their fight will be the best you see this year. Rigondeaux (17-0, 11 KOs) is a master of defense, and though Lomachenko?s unyielding offense breaks down his opponents in a way they?ve never experienced before, one of the major questions is whether Lomachenko (9-1, 7 KOs) can land punches on his opponent.
The betting odds say yes?Lomachenko is a -325 favorite, meaning you?d have to bet $325 to win $100, while Rigondeaux is a +250 underdog. But it might not be that simple. And though there are plenty of reasons to tune in to this potentially historic bout, here are three specific reasons to watch.
1)Lomachenko?s offense vs. Rigondeaux?s defense: Lomachenko uses amazing footwork and solid punching power to wear down his opponents after they take rounds and rounds of abuse. Rigondeaux makes it almost impossible for his opponents to touch him. The big questions: Can Lomachenko find Rigondeaux?s chin? And will Rigondeaux be more aggressive and try to put pressure on Lomachenko? As for the second question, Lomachenko said, ?No, I don?t think he?s going to be doing that. He has never done that in his whole career. When he goes forward he falls down in the ring.? As for the former query, Lomachenko said, ?I have a plan in my head, a picture of what I am going to do but I don?t think it would be too smart to talk about it right now. I think it is better one time to see than 100 times to say.?
2)Rigondeaux could be at a disadvantage with his weight: He?s competed his entire career at the 122-pound junior featherweight division, but Rigondeaux has moved up two weight classes to fight Lomachenko in the 130-pound junior lightweight division. Rigondeaux said he?s moving up because that?s the only way he could get a Lomachenko fight, though Lomachenko?s team countered by saying Rigondeaux didn?t want to battle Lomachenko when Lomachenko was competing as a 126-pound featherweight. Either way, Rigondeaux said his weight gain won?t be a disadvantage, especially since Lomachenko appears to be only slightly taller than Rigondeaux. And if you take a look at Rigondeaux, he looks to be in phenomenal shape.
3)Rigondeaux has sneaky power: One doesn?t necessarily think of Rigondeaux as a power puncher, but he can crack. Just ask Moises Flores.
Though that fight was a no-contest since the punch was thrown after the ball sounded, the point remains. Rigondeaux can hurt his opponents. Of course, he?s never thrown power punchers at a 130-pounder, so it?s unclear if Rigondeaux can actually hurt Lomachenko. ?I don?t look for a knockout,? Rigondeaux said. ?It just happens. It?s unpredictable.? But does Rigondeaux think he?ll manage to stop Lomachenko? Said Rigondeaux: ?Lomachenko and 40 more like him.?
Cotto?s upset one of biggest of the year: Entering his bout last Saturday vs. Sadam Ali, Miguel Cotto was a comfortable favorite, as Cotto was a -900, meaning you?d have to bet $900 to win $100. But if you put your money on Ali, who was a +600 underdog, you made a good decision.
Though the biggest odds-on upset of the year was when Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, +1000 underdog, upset Roman ?Chocolatito? Gonzalez in their first fight in March, last Saturday was not a great day for sportsbooks, who had to pay $600 for a $100 bet on Ali.
?While Cotto dropping a decision to Ali was not the biggest upset of 2017, it was probably the one with the biggest profile,? Bovada sportsbook manager Kevin Bradley told Forbes in an email. ?The result was still not a good one for the book as a Cotto loss resulted in the fourth worst boxing day of 2017.?
Cotto scores big ratings in defeat: In the final fight of his career, Cotto?who made a final purse of $750,000 to Ali?s $600,000?still managed to score some of the best premium cable ratings of the year.
According to Nielsen Media Research, HBO?s main event averaged 944,000 viewers and peaked at 1.012 million viewers. It?s the second-highest rated premium cable fight of the year (the best was the Terence Crawford-Felix Diaz bout that averaged 961,000 with a peak of 1.04 million), and it comes a week after Sergey Kovalev?s return to the ring averaged 869,000 with a peak of 900,000.
