Boxing
Lomachenko’s sacrifice means revival is at hand
Published
8 months agoon
By
J. HumzaVasily Lomachenko doesn’t have to do that and continues his efforts to regain another lightweight belt.
He has already won two Olympic gold medals, has already become world champion in his third professional fight, has already stopped four more opponents – including the two-time gold medalist of his rival Guillermo Rigondeaux – and has already won world champion titles in three divisions.
The 36-year-old Ukrainian Lomachenko (17-3, 11 KO) goes to ESPN on Saturday in search of the vacant IBF lightweight belt against former unified Australian lightweight champion George Kambosos (21-2, 10 KO).
“A few things matter for longevity: avoiding punches and lifestyle outside the ring, not partying,” Chris Algieri, an analyst for ProBox TV’s “Deep Waters,” said on Thursday’s episode. “And dedication and desire. Lomachenko has it.
“Lomachenko doesn’t fight for money. He is fighting to become champion again. Yes, he has great defense. Yes, he stays fit. But he also has this fire in his belly. He’s a guy who will survive.”
Considering that Lomachenko has only been narrowly defeated in his career – by the overweight Orlando Salido when Lomachenko was fighting for the world title in his second professional fight, and by Teofimo Lopez and Devin Haney on the scorecards in this most unfavorable of the three categories weights in which he fought, Saturday’s fight is full of intrigue.
Yes, Kambosos has home advantage at the RAC Arena in Perth and is younger, but Lomachenko carries within him that elusive feeling of wanting that stripe so badly.
How bad? Go back and watch the video of his post-fight tears following his loss to Devin Haney. Who else in the game reacted this way?
And while Lomachenko could certainly follow the direction suggested by his promotional company Top Rank by scheduling further fights with the likes of their current and expected lightweight champions Shakur Stevenson and Emanuel Navarrete, respectively, there are also intriguing matchups with the rest of the weight class 135-pound champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis, 130-pound champion Oscar Valdez, or moving up to where he started at featherweight against Ring Magazine’s newly anointed pound-for-pound king, undisputed super bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue.
“It’s a huge step down for (Lomachenko)… people make fun of Inoue because it’s such a scorching topic, but he weighs 122 pounds and that’s where he got there,” Algieri said. “I don’t see him going to 130 pounds. Against (Luis) Nery he looked feeble and was dropped. Are you going to give up (that many) pounds against a real boxer?
“I don’t (even) think Lomachenko is forgetting about this fight at all. This is the final fight for him and defeat could be the end.”
This is perhaps the harshest truth of all considering what Lomachenko has brought to the sport, evident in the exceptional skills he developed under the tutelage of his coach-father, Anatoli, which led to the creation of his great and well-deserved nickname “The Matrix”. “
Is he still 36? Are you still able to analyze your enemies mentally and physically like you did at the peak of your career?
“For (Kambosos) to be able to attack or leverage, he needs you in his range to (deliver) his explosive ability… I don’t think Lomachenko will give that to Kambosos,” former welterweight champion Shawn Porter said on “Deep Waters.” “If you don’t give Kambosos what he wants, he won’t create or force anything, he won’t work on his jabs, feints and good, quick feet.
“If Kambosos doesn’t have rhythm or doesn’t flow, it will be Lomachenko’s fight from the moment he starts to the moment he finishes the fight.”
Porter agrees that a win is necessary to ensure Lomachenko’s career continues.
This week, Lomachenko’s promoter Bob Arum, who once called his fighter “Picasso” and his most inventive boxer since Ali, said he sees some slippage from the Ukrainian.
Porter, however, said he views Lomachenko as fresher than another aging fighter who looked great on Saturday night, Canelo Alvarez.
“He has everything it takes to be champion again and fight anyone in the 135-pound division,” Porter said.
While Arum hints at the possibility of extending WBC champion Stevenson’s expiring contract by pitting him against a victorious Lomachenko, Porter predicts the better fight will be the one against Mexico’s Navarrete (38-1-1) if he manages to win a fourth-division title by defeating Denys Berinchyk May 18 in San Diego.
“The difference in style… this is one of the best fights you can have at 135 right now,” Porter said.
Lomachenko has also been courting a date with Davis for more than five years, and Davis’ June 15 title defense against Frank Martin gives them a favorable paragraph on the calendar.
Lomachenko is a -650 favorite to win Saturday.
“We can’t rule out Kambosos if he plays at the level he can, but… Lomachenko understands what he wants to do,” Porter said. “Lomachenko continues to train as he needs to to perform as he should.”
No matter what stage of his career he is in and who is waiting for him, Lomachenko knows no other way.
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Boxing
Ryan Rozicki is waiting for Badou Jack’s consent to mandatory cooperation with the WBC
Published
5 days agoon
January 13, 2025The World Boxing Council (WBC) ordered world cruiserweight champion Badou “The Ripper” Jack (20-1-1, 19 KO) to make a mandatory title defense against Ryan “The Bruiser” Rozicki (20-1), number 1 in the WBC ranking – 1, 19 KOs).
If both camps fail to successfully negotiate an agreement, the WBC will organize a tender on February 4, followed by the Jack vs. Rozicki. Rozicki’s promoter, Three Lions Promotions, immediately sent Team Jacek an offer to promote the fight in Canada last week.
“We are waiting for their counteroffer,” explained promoter Dan Otter of Three Lions Promotions. “Boxing has had a huge resurgence in Canada and Ryan is leading the way. He is one of the most electrifying and hardest-hitting fighters in boxing, definitely in the cruiserweight division. He wants the WBC green belt and ultimately the unification of the division. Ryan will fight Jack anywhere for the belt.”
29-year-old Rozicki, born in Sydney (Nova Scotia) and living in Hamilton (Ontario), fought 22 professional fights against 21 different opponents (twice against Yamil Alberto Peralta), stopping 19 of the 20 opponents he defeated. an eye-opening 95-KO percentage.
Jack, 41, was a 2008 Olympian representing his native Sweden. He is a three-division world champion, as well as the WBC super middleweight and World Boxing Association (WBA) lightweight heavyweight title holder. Jack has a record of 5-0-2 (2 KO) in world championship fights.
“We respect Jack and I don’t want to sound disrespectful,” Otter added, “but he’s over 40 years vintage and has been relatively inactive for two years (only one fight). He brings a lot of experience and respect to the ring, but he will fight a newborn defender with a lot of power. Jack is going to struggle and honestly, I don’t think he’ll make it past the first few rounds.”
Ryan Rozicki is on a mission to become the first Canadian cruiserweight world champion.
The next move is Badou Jack’s.
Boxing
Floyd Mayweather’s record is not normal, it can’t happen in 70 years
Published
6 days agoon
January 12, 2025Floyd Mayweather’s incredible 50-0 record is not normal and cannot be repeated in sports for another seventy years.
This is the view of Saudi Arabian president Turki Alalshikh, who wants to adopt the UFC model in which fighters lose many fights during their career.
In a speech as he hosted the Ring Magazine Awards after acquiring the long-running boxing publication from Oscar De La Hoya, Alalshikh was unequivocal in his opinion.
“Now losing some fights in boxing must be normal,” he explained. “All fighters want a career similar to Floyd Mayweather – no losses. This may happen once every 50, 60 or 70 years.
“We need it [to be] like currently in the UFC model, where champions lose and win,” added the matchmaker during the Riyad season.
Mayweather rose through the sport in the tardy 1990s to become one of its youngest superstars. Mayweather’s professional success came after winning a bronze medal at the Olympics after losing to Serafim Todorov.
Winning world titles in five weight classes, Mayweather was untouchable. The Grand Rapids native only came close to defeat a few times. He dominated Manny Pacquiao and overtook Canelo Alvarez and Oscar De La Hoya after heated debates, with decisions that should have been made unanimously.
Towards the end of his career, Mayweather chose to face Andre Berto and Conor McGregor, easily winning and ending his boxing career at the age of 50 without ever going out. Calling himself “the greatest of all time,” Mayweather earned first-ballot Hall of Fame honors and is widely considered one of, if not the greatest defensive fighter of all time.
However, Alalshikh says this type of career needs to end so that fans can get the most out of boxing, as is the case with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Boxing needs to become more attractive, and Alalshikh sees the failures of top stars as a way to keep interest at an all-time high.
In this sport, many boxers enjoy undefeated streaks, the most notable of which is Oleksandr Usyk. The Ukrainian Pound for Pound King is 23-0 and has beaten the best he has to offer in his division and cruiserweight classification.
It remains a mystery how Alalshikh plans to make Usyk suffer while he dominates everyone else. By the time his grand plan goes into action, Usyk will be long gone, and Gervonta Davis, Shakur Stevenson and Devin Haney may be more realistic targets.
Boxing
Manny Pacquiao remains the favorite to win the title against Mario Barrios
Published
2 weeks agoon
January 6, 2025WBN understands that despite alternative options emerging, it is more likely that Manny Pacquiao will face Mario Barrios next.
Bob Santos, coach of WBC welterweight champion Barrios, told World Boxing News that he is currently in contact with Pacquiao’s team. Asked by WBN if he had spoken to Pacquiao or representatives of any other challenger, Santos replied: “Yes, Pacquiao’s promoter, Sean Gibbons.” Pressed on whether Barrios vs Pacquiao might happen next, he added: “It’s challenging to say. We’ll have to see how this plays out.”
WBN contacted Santos after Conor Benn emerged as a potential alternative to Barrios. The British fighter, who recently returned from a suspension following two positive drug tests, is keen to return to competition.
Benn showed favor with the World Boxing Council at the recent WBC Convention, the WBC Evaluation Committee and during an interview with the sanctioning body over the weekend. “The Destroyer” is ranked second in the rankings at 147 pounds, despite less than solid opponents during his time in exile, during which Benn competed twice in the United States while his career in the United Kingdom was in doubt.
As he battled to clear his name and with the British Anti-Doping Authority finding no evidence that Benn had intentionally taken ostarine, the 28-year-old’s career took a pointed nosedive. Despite this, he remains highly rated and at least one step away from fighting for an eliminator or one of the remaining championship titles.
However, Pacquiao remains Barrios’ favorite. Now it’s up to the boxing legend and Hall of Famer who got the first votes to secure his shot. WBN believes a July date – most likely at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas – is the most realistic date for a Nevada swan song.
Pacquiao could extend his record as the oldest welterweight champion by six years if he can secure a huge victory over the 29-year-old world champion. At 46 years antique, such a scenario remains unlikely, but he can never be compared to one of the greatest players of this generation.
Unlike heavier boxers and his training regiment, Pacquiao looks in great shape despite his advanced age. Everything is set for a massive return to the boxing capital of the world, provided Pacquiao and his team can manage his political ambitions, which are expected to run from this month until May. After that time, Pacquiao could find himself in the summer finals and become the all-time champion, regardless of the result.
Barrios is based in the city, where he trained with Santos, and would be the perfect opponent to see out the career of one of the greatest fighters in history.
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