Amid the pandemic, a fight that figures to be anything but anemic is about to take place.
On Sunday, WBA-WBO lightweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko will face IBF counterpart Teofimo Lopez at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, in a fight that has “legendary” written all over it.
Lomachenko, 32, is arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world today. He is 14-1 with 10 knockouts, with all but one (his pro debut in October 2013) of his fights being world title bouts. He won his first world title (WBO featherweight) in his third paid contest (June 2014), his second (WBO super featherweight) in his seventh (June 2016) and his third (WBA lightweight) in his twelfth (May 2018). Lomachenko’s only defeat came in his second fight in March 2014, when he dropped a decision to Mexica Orlando Salido in a battle for the WBO featherweight diadem.
Believe it or not, Lomachenko bagged three division crowns in a span of just 12 fights, breaking the record of Australian Jeff Fenech who won his third division crown in his 20th fight in 1988. Lomachenko offers Albert Einstein-like IQ in the ring, befuddling opponents with movements and punches thrown from even the most unimaginable angle. Lomachenko methodically breaks down his opponents and on several occasions even forced some of them to quit out of frustration. One victim, Anthony Crolla, swears that Lomachenko “sees things happening before you do.”
Lomachenko, however, is facing his toughest test to date in the brash and ambitious Lopez.
Lopez, 23, is 15-0 with 12 knockouts and offers a pair of explosive fists. He turned pro in November 2016 and won the IBF lightweight crown last year with a devastating second round demolition of Richard Commey.
Not a few believe that Lopez still lacks the seasoning to face the veteran Lomachenko, but give the young man credit for pursuing the fight. Lopez offers size, youth and power inside the ring. While Lomachenko is considered small for a lightweight, Lopez is a natural at 135 pounds and may even be heavier come fight time.
Lomachenko has been looked upon as untouchable in the ring, but observers point to the fight with Venezuelan Jorge Linares in May 2018 as the one that gave foes a glimmer of hope. In the fight, Lomachenko got too cocky and walked straight into Linares’ right hand. Lomachenko landed on the seat of his pants for the first time in his pro career. Lomachenko recovered quickly and flattened Linares with a vicious body shot in the 10th round.
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Lopez’s staple punch is the right straight which is considered the weakness of southpaw fighters like Lomachenko. But Lomachenko is a very slippery fighter who knows how to cleverly spin away from the right hand. Lopez will have to use the strategy Salido effectively employed to beat Lomachenko. As Salido told ESPN, “I got on top of him (Lomachenko), trying not to give him distance and not let him think. If you let him think, he starts with side steps, his movements, his left-handed guard, and that makes him very dangerous.”
Simply put, Lopez cannot allow Lomachenko to dictate the tempo of the fight. Lopez must take the initiative and throw punches in bunches. Lopez must cut the ring well and keep the pressure on Lomachenko. Salido was all over Lomachenko in their fight and did not give the latter any breathing room.
Both Lopez and Lomachenko are coming off lengthy periods of inactivity because of the coronavirus pandemic. Lomachenko’s last fight came in August 2018 while Lopez was last spotted in the ring in December. For Lomachenko, the 14-month layoff is the longest in his career. Expect some ring rust to manifest in the ring.
While Lomachenko is the smart money pick, the fight is really too close to call. The prognosis is that Lopez will have to start fast. If Lopez fails to nail Lomachenko within the first half of the fight, the latter is expected to take over and wear down Lopez for a possible decision or late-round stoppage win.
Lopez is a legitimate threat owing to his big right hand, but finding Lomachenko and landing the big punch is not that easy a task. Lomachenko is likely to be cautious and will avoid the mistake he made against Linares. “Lomachenko is the better fighter,” mused Salido. “He has more mobility, he knows how to take advantage of your timing to avoid punches and he has many variations to his game.”
