
‘Hi-Tech’ Was Made to Work for it… But He Got the Win in an Enthralling Battle With Britain’s Luke Campbell… But Vasiliy Lomachenko is Just a Class Above the Rest…
Lomachenko has almost become a mythical figure at this point. The Ukrainian boxer and two time-Olympic gold medallist is truly something special. He’s just added fellow gold medallist Luke Campbell to his list of scalps.
The former super-featherweight is on a mission to unify the lightweight division. He retained his WBA and WBO titles on the night, adding the vacant WBC belt on the night against a game Campbell.
Is he the best in the world? Well, that’s a matter of opinion. Some will say Terence Crawford is, but Lomachenko’s name has to be up there. He just needs a genuine rival to truly seal his name as an all-time legend.
Loma is loosening up and snaps Campell's head back 🥊
Streaming LIVE on ESPN+ ▶️ https://t.co/h528zYw0NR pic.twitter.com/HPXLltV9OP
— ESPN (@espn) August 31, 2019
Sensational
The story coming into this one was that Campbell was bigger and longer than Lomachenko and needed to use this to his advantage. A skilled fighter in his own right, he tested ‘Loma’ but was outclassed when it mattered. He was hurt badly in the fifth and did well to survive the frame.
Credit where’s it due though, he was roared on by his home crowd in London and came back in the next couple of rounds, especially in the seventh where he definitely rattled Lomachenko, causing the Ukrainian to come back hard himself in an exciting exchange.
In the 11th, Campbell was dropped after taking a load of shots to the body. The Brit bravely carried on and would get hurt again in the 12th but managed to hang on for the final bell.
SAVED BY THE BELL 😬@VasylLomachenko flurries to end Round 5 #LomaCampbell pic.twitter.com/r4j2bVAXro
— ESPN (@espn) August 31, 2019
Tough to Take
Campbell was hard on himself after the fight, despite losing to an all-time legend. The final scorecards read 118-109, 119-108, and 119-108, but most people think that it was actually a little bit closer. Bad Left Hook scored it 117-110 on their cards, which seems more accurate. Campbell did better than a lot of other fighters have done. He said:
“He’s just beat me, so he’s very good. He’s a special fighter. We all knew he was a special fighter. But this is boxing and we train to win. I’m disappointed in myself. But it’s hard to follow through with someone like that who is so good in front of you.”
Vasiliy Lomachenko's 11th-Round Knockdown (vs. Luke Campbell) pic.twitter.com/jbKJKpLlhO
— Kyle Johnson (@VonPreux) August 31, 2019
Unify
Now Lomachenko can focus on getting that final piece of the puzzle to unify the lightweight division. He has his eye on the IBF belt currently held by Richard Commey. Commey is set to face mandatory challenger and much-hyped young fighter Teofimo Lopez in December.
So there’s a good chance ‘Hi-Tech’ will hold all four major titles in 2020. That’s definitely worth a bet. Promoter Bob Arum says that the sky is the limit for Lomachenko. He said:
“We’re going to fight the best fighters at featherweight, the best fighters at super featherweight, and the best fighters at lightweight,” Arum said. “There are a lot of good fighters out there. He can make featherweight easily, he can make 130 pounds easily, and all of these guys will fight.”