Vinny’s Views: Vasyl Lomachenko Vs Luke Campbell: The Stats, The Facts & The RSR Fight Prediction is In!
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By Vinny “Glory Days” Lucci
Margaret Wolfe Hungerford once penned, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” but trying to educate the pugilistic masses of the masters of Marquis of Queensberry rules can sometimes be compared to beating a dead horse. For every old school aficionado who understands the labyrinth and history of boxing origins there are a plethora of today’s spectators blinded by ignorant social media who wistfully support the notion that the Adrien Broner’s of the world are one fight away from redemption and one step away from the nonpareil elite who control the PPV coin.
If you are in the aforementioned old school group who wouldn’t indulge the delusional in comparing paper mache titles against pound for pound greats this weekend holds a gem in waiting.
The Event:
On August 31 Sky Sports Box Office presents Vasyl Lomachenko defending his WBO/WBA lightweight titles against Luke Campbell with the vacant WBC belt also up for grabs. Promoter Eddie Hearn will showcase the headliner at the O2 Arena in London, England. The live stream event will showcase two Olympic Gold southpaws in their prime vying for supremacy on two different playing fields. Campbell is banking on his strengths of height, reach and power to nullify the champion’s current stranglehold on Asgard as the face of best boxer extent.
The Stats:
Vasyl Lomachenko is a rare breed of thoroughbred animal that captured the public’s imagination in his pro debut after a long storied amateur career which produced Olympic gold in 2008 and 2012. The champion is a Ukrainian wunderkind whose skill set produced the monikers of “Hi-Tech” and the “Matrix.” So bonafide the claim that his legion of fans and media alike has simply dubbed him “Loma.” Standing 5’ 7” with a sparse reach of 65 ½” Vasyl’s ledger of 13-1, 10 KO’s is beguiling beyond comprehension for what he has achieved in such a relative short span of time.
The challenger amusingly is billed as “Cool Hand” with a noble amateur background that culminated in Olympic gold in 2012. The British boxer stands 5’9” with a 71” wingspan. His resume reads 20-2, 16 KO’s having lost two split decisions to Yuan Mendy and Jorge Linares in 2015 and 2017 respectively.
Last Fight:
The champion looked strong in turning back the challenge of Anthony Crolla last April at the Staples Center in Los Angeles California with a fourth round knockout.
The challenger also fared well stopping Adrian Young by fifth round TKO in March at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia Pennsylvania.
Styles:
Loma fights in perpetual motion playing a high stakes game of chess where he is out thinking his opponent six moves ahead of his jab. He possesses an innate ability where you simply can’t step to him inside the pocket, nor can you step away. Like a repelling magnet he keeps his adversaries at arm’s reach yet they seldom land a significant punch. His aptly named matrix skills are something to behold as he commands an arsenal of every punch ever conceived but often launches them from bizarre angles that his foes simply can’t anticipate.
The challenger fights tall from southpaw stance coming forward flat footed behind typical range finding jabs and unimaginative one/two combinations. Luke splays his stance much too wide for balance costing him reactionary time in both offense and defense. Secondary flaws arise when forced to back up on his heels unable to fight from defensive shell. The challenger’s lateral movement is highly suspect when raising the bar on the caliber of opponent. When Campbell steps inside the pocket with body shots the arch is too wide and telegraphed while often dropping his guard for a split second to admire his work.
What to look for fight night:
Regardless of who opposes Lomachenko the key to scoring combinations is to circumvent his dazzling footwork. This is easier said than done as todays boxers simply don’t walk behind a half dozen jabs at a time as they did back in the 80’s. While Campbell will try to establish canvass ownership he will be systematically deconstructed round by round, first giving up forward momentum and then stripped bare to survival mode.
The Vinny Factor:
On paper the similarities and coincidences are startling. Both men are 31 years of age, Olympic Gold medal winners and southpaws that box with conviction. Yet in laymen’s terms anything that Luke Campbell can do in the ring, Vasyl Lomachenko can do much better.
Both combatants turned pro in 2013 with the challenger taking the traditional route to title contention while the champion took the road less traveled and called out champion Orlando Salido in just his second pro bout. Loma lost a split decision where he was fouled repeatedly round after round as inept referee Laurence Cole allowed Salido to indulge in a low blow foul fest. The champion had failed to make weight and actually entered ring as a welterweight. The lessons learned by Lomachenko were startling as he silenced his doubters winning WBO featherweight title in his very next bout and has never looked back. His novice numbered resume already includes wins over world beaters Gary Russell JR., Nicholas Walters, Guillermo Rigondeaux, Jorge Linares and Jose’ Pedraza reducing them to beaten and broken men.
Taking all this into consideration you won’t have to look any further than common opponent Jorge Linares as a litmus test who was able to out gut Campbell by split decision back in 2017, and was beaten down eight months later being stopped by Lomachenko in tenth round. The difference in experience and talent is overwhelming not razor thin.
Odds:
Vegas opened line with the champion at -2500 against the challenger at +850. Late money heading into fight week dropped odds slightly with Lomachenko still the favorite at -1600 with Campbell at +800.
RSR Prediction:
Vasyl Lomachenko by stoppage in second half of bout.
Aftermath:
A loss to Lomachenko who is perceived on world stage to be the pound for pound king is no sin and should not affect Campbell’s marketability to seek out another title match in the land of alphabet belts.
The boxing fraternity will then wait on baited breath for the colossus clash of little giants in the hopes Loma will be matched with extraordinary rising superstar Gervonta “Tank” Davis.
Stay tuned…
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