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Vasyl Lomachenko: Way Too Early to Be p4p King with Only 11 Fights…Right?

By Bradley “The Bulldog” Johnson

With only 11 professional fights, it’s way too early for any boxer to be mentioned in the pound for pound rankings, or is it? What if that boxers first opponent had a record of 25-3 and he knocked him out in the 4th round? What if he fought for a title in his second professional fight and lost a disputed split decision, only to win the title in his third professional fight? What if that fighter then became the first boxer in history to win two titles in two weight divisions by his 7th professional fight? I think you can see where I am going with this. Yes, I think it is very possible for a fighter to not only be ranked in the pound for pound rankings with only 11 professional fights, but to be ranked #1.

First let’s look at his path to number one and his opposition. Vasyl Lomachenko, 10-1, 8KO’s didn’t waste time building his resume off the backs of shot fighters or UPS drivers looking to earn some extra cash on the weekends. There is not one weak name or opponent with a suspect record on that resume. The worst record of any opponent Vasyl has faced is the tough veteran Orlando Salido, 41-12-2, 30 KO’s. Salido is also the only glimmer of hope in any debate for the Loma Naysayer as a crutch that they all too often lean on. As that crutch starts feeling fragile under pressure they seek out current welterweight phenom Terence Crawford to carry the load. The delusional why is he ducking a welterweight argument, or if he beats him then he deserves a spot at the top, but I’ll digress and address that shortly.

Vasyl Lomachencho’s 11 opponents have a combined record of 308 wins with only 27 losses. Vasyl’ s opponents not named Salido have a combined record of 267 -15. Boxing history has not seen a boxer with that level of opposition, this early, well ever. He has no tune up fights or easy fights, although he somehow turns boogie men into easy fights. The ax-man Nicolas Walters was supposed to be a big test and maybe a mistake to challenge the heavy punching KO artist that disposed of former p4p #3 Nonito Donaire in 6 rounds. Instead Walters looked like he showed up with a dull ax and no other weapons in his arsenal. He also became the first of 4 straight opponents to retire on their stool. Something else we cannot recall in boxing history, not at this level at least. Vasyl made easy work of Jason Sosa, only stopped once previously, and Miguel Marriaga who had never been stopped before facing Lomachenko. This led to another first in boxing history. Two, two-time Olympic Gold medalist sharing the ring at the same time. What was supposed to be another tough, tactical chess match against a smaller man sharing the p4p list with him, was once again a lop-sided fight where once again the opponent Guillermo Rigondeaux, 17-1, 11 KO’s quitting on his stool with no answers.

Let’s tackle the problem with getting caught up with the amount of fights a fighter has opposed to level of opposition. Plain and simple, quality over quantity. Do yourselves a favor, and look up your favorite fighters first 10, 20, or even 30+ fights and see how it compares to Lomachenko’s resume after 11 fights. It took Terence Crawford, 32-0, 23 KO’s till his 20th fight for a legitimate challenge against Breidis Prescot, 30-12, 22 KO’s, then his 23rd fight for his first World Title. The record of Crawford’s first 19 opponents was 175-178. This is not meant as a dis towards Crawford. I think he is one of the best p4p fighters in the world and can understand the case for him being #1.

My point is, take away the fluff of his first 19 fights and now we are comparing the opponents and resume of the most recent 10-12 fights and the way they won, and it becomes a legitimate discussion. The same is true of other top pound for pounders, Gennady Golovkin, Errol Spence, JR., and Canelo Alvarez. All of them have very impressive resume’s, with Golovkin’ s and Canelo’s being the deepest, but Vasyl has the resume with the least amount of fluff if any.

In conclusion, I rank Vasyl Lomachenko #1 p4p because of resume, level of opposition and accomplishments along with passing the eye test. His boxing run and level of opposition is something I cannot recall in boxing history. He continues to beat the best competition he can find while actively seeking the next level and looking for new challenges. He entertains with footwork, hand speed, accuracy, timing along with the power to frustrate and get guys out of there. Often taking champion fighters and making them quit do to being straight out classed. The armature pedigree combined with athletic talent, desire and passion to fight, make Vasyl Lomachenko is a must watch p4p King.

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