Vasyl Anatoliyovych Lomachenko ( uk, Василь Анатолійович Ломаченко, ; also spelled Vasiliy; born 17 February 1988) is a Ukrainian
professional boxer
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional bouts are supervised by a regulatory autho ...
featherweight
Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling.
Boxing
Professional boxing
History
A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of . In the early days of the division, this ...
to
lightweight
Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing.
Boxing
Professional boxing
The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing.
Notable lightweight boxe ...
, including unified and lineal titles at lightweight.
Lomachenko is one of the most successful
amateur boxer
Amateur boxing is a variant of boxing practiced at the collegiate level, at the Olympic Games, Pan American Games and Commonwealth Games, as well as many associations.
Amateur boxing bouts are short in duration, comprising three rounds of three ...
s of all time, possessing a record of 396 wins and 1 loss, with that loss avenged twice. Competing in the featherweight and lightweight divisions, he won a silver medal at the 2007 World Championships, gold at the 2008 European Championships, consecutive gold at the
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
and
2012 Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
, and consecutive gold at the
2009
File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...
and 2011 World Championships.
Making his professional debut in 2013, Lomachenko tied the record with
Saensak Muangsurin
Saensak Muangsurin (แสนศักดิ์ เมืองสุรินทร์) (13 August 1950 – 16 April 2009) was a professional boxer from Phetchabun, Thailand. He was a Muay Thai fighter and professional boxer. He was WBC light w ...
for winning a world title in the fewest professional fights, becoming the WBO featherweight champion in his third fight. He is known for his exceptional hand speed, timing, accuracy, creativity, athleticism, defence and footwork.
He has won several awards by media outlets throughout his career. '' The Ring'' magazine and
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
named him Prospect of the Year in 2013;
CBS Sports
CBS Sports is the sports division of the American television network CBS. Its headquarters are in the CBS Building on W 52nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, with programs produced out of Studio 43 at the CBS Broadcast Center on W 5 ...
named him Boxer of the Year in 2016;
HBO Sports
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
named him Boxer of the Year in 2016 and in 2017; and the
Boxing Writers Association of America The Boxing Writers Association of America (BWAA) was originally formed in 1926 as the Boxing Writers Association of Greater New York. The association's purpose is to promote better working conditions for boxing writers, as well as hold its writers ...
and ''The Ring'' named him Fighter of the Year in 2017.
As of November 2022, Lomachenko is ranked as the world's seventh best active boxer,
pound for pound
Pound for pound is a ranking used in combat sports, such as boxing, wrestling, or mixed martial arts, of who the better fighters are irrespective of their weight, i.e. adjusted to compensate for weight class. As these fighters do not compete direc ...
, by '' The Ring''. He is also ranked as the world's second best active lightweight by ''The Ring'', the
Transnational Boxing Rankings Board
The Transnational Boxing Rankings Board (TBRB) is an all-volunteer initiative formed in October 2012 with the intention of providing professional boxing with authoritative top-ten rankings, identifying the singular world champion of every divisio ...
, ESPN, and fourth by
BoxRec
BoxRec or boxrec.com is a website dedicated to holding updated records of professional and amateur boxers, both male and female. It also maintains a MediaWiki-based encyclopaedia of boxing.
The objective of the site is to document every profess ...
.
Early life
Lomachenko was coached by his father Anatoly Lomachenko from a young age. He claims that if his father had not been a boxing coach he probably would have chosen to play
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
professionally."Lomachenko lapping up the applause"
International Boxing Association
The International Boxing Association (IBA), previously known as the Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA), is an independent sport organization that sanctions amateur (Olympic-style) boxing matches and awards world and subordinate cha ...
. 14 September 2009. Archived fro the original on 16 September 2009. Retrieved 23 August 2017. According to
Bob Arum
Robert Arum (born December 8, 1931) is an American lawyer and boxing promoter. He is the founder and CEO of Top Rank, a professional boxing promotion company based in Las Vegas. Prior to becoming a boxing promoter, Arum was employed as an attorn ...
in 2017, Lomachenko's father did not let him train for boxing until he attended traditional
Ukrainian dance
''Ukrainian dance'' ( uk, Український тaнeць, translit. ''Ukrainian 'tanets' '') mostly refers to the traditional folk dances of the Ukrainians as an ethnic group, but may also refer dance of the other ethnic groups within Ukrain ...
classes. He then went on to gymnastics before finally getting into the ring.
Amateur career
At the 2007 World Championships in Chicago, he won silver by beating
Abner Cotto
Abner Cotto Román (born August 10, 1987) is a Puerto Rican professional boxer who currently competes in the lightweight division. He is a member of the Cotto family, which has produced a professional world champion and multiple amateur ...
in the first round, Theodoros Papazov,
Mikhail Bernadski
Mikhail Biarnadski (born 10 January 1977) is a boxer from Belarus.
He participated in the 2004 Summer Olympics. There he was stopped in the second round of the Featherweight (57 kg) division by Romania's Viorel Simion. His olympic resu ...
,
Arturo Santos Reyes
José Arturo Santos Reyes (born 28 December 1985) is a Mexican professional boxer. As an amateur, he won a silver medal at the 2004 Junior World Championships at flyweight and later competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics at featherweight.
Amate ...
, and Li Yang in the semifinal to reach fellow southpaw and Russian favorite
Albert Selimov
Albert Shevketovich Selimov (; born 5 April 1986) is a Russian former amateur boxer of Lezgin descent. He is best known for being the only man to defeat Vasiliy Lomachenko in the amateur ranks. Competing for Russia he won the 2007 world title, ...
, to whom he lost 11–16.
Lomachenko won gold at the 2008 Olympic Games in
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
. He beat his five opponents by an astonishing 45 point margin, outscoring them 58–13, en route to his first gold medal at the senior level. He was subsequently named the outstanding boxer of the tournament and awarded the
Val Barker Trophy
The Val Barker Trophy is presented every four years to the most "outstanding boxer" at the Olympic Games. In theory, the award goes to the top "pound for pound" boxer in the Olympics. The winner is selected by a committee of International Boxing ...
. Additionally, he won gold again that year to also become continental champion at the European Championships in
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
.
He won gold at the 2009 World Championships in
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
. He then competed as a lightweight at the 2011 World Championships in
Baku
Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...
after
AIBA
The International Boxing Association (IBA), previously known as the Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA), is an independent sport organization that sanctions amateur (Olympic-style) boxing matches and awards world and subordinate cha ...
removed the featherweight division. There, he won his second consecutive gold medal to become a two-weight world champion.
Following a forced move up to lightweight, he won his second consecutive Olympic gold medal at the 2012 Olympic Games in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
to become a rare two-weight Olympic champion. He defeated
Han Soon-Chul
Han Soon-Chul (; born December 30, 1984) is an amateur boxer from South Korea who won a silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, and competed at the 2006 Asian Games in the Bantamweight (-54 kg) division winning the silver medal. At the 2010 A ...
of
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
, , and was a strong candidate to win the Val Barker Trophy for a second time in what would have historically been an unprecedented feat. Ultimately, he was edged by welterweight gold medal winner,
Serik Sapiyev
Serik Sapiyev ( kk, Серік Жұманғалиұлы Сәпиев, born November 16, 1983) is an amateur boxer from Kazakhstan who won the world title in the light welterweight (-64 kg) division in 2005 and 2007 and Olympic Gold 2012 at w ...
, of
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
.
He finished his extensive amateur career with an impressive record of 396 wins and only one loss, to
Albert Selimov
Albert Shevketovich Selimov (; born 5 April 1986) is a Russian former amateur boxer of Lezgin descent. He is best known for being the only man to defeat Vasiliy Lomachenko in the amateur ranks. Competing for Russia he won the 2007 world title, ...
, which was avenged twice. In November 2017, boxing website ''The Sweet Science'' conducted a readers' poll, which ran for several weeks, to determine the amateur boxer regarded by the public majority as the all-time best. Alongside Lomachenko, the five other standout finalists selected were: Laszlo Papp, Teofilo Stevenson,
Felix Savon
Felix may refer to:
* Felix (name), people and fictional characters with the name
Places
* Arabia Felix is the ancient Latin name of Yemen
* Felix, Spain, a municipality of the province Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, S ...
,
Mark Breland
Mark Anthony Breland (born May 11, 1963) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1984 to 1997, and held the World Boxing Association, WBA welterweight title twice between 1987 and 1990. He later became an actor with a wide rang ...
, and
Guillermo Rigondeaux
Guillermo Rigondeaux Ortiz (; born 30 September 1980) is a Cuban professional boxer. He is a former world champion in two weight classes, having held the unified WBA (Super), WBO and ''Ring'' magazine super bantamweight titles between 2013 and ...
. While none were able to claim the majority vote, Lomachenko won a plurality, having led the poll with nearly one-third of the total votes cast.
World Championships results
2007
*Defeated
Abner Cotto
Abner Cotto Román (born August 10, 1987) is a Puerto Rican professional boxer who currently competes in the lightweight division. He is a member of the Cotto family, which has produced a professional world champion and multiple amateur ...
Mikhail Bernadski
Mikhail Biarnadski (born 10 January 1977) is a boxer from Belarus.
He participated in the 2004 Summer Olympics. There he was stopped in the second round of the Featherweight (57 kg) division by Romania's Viorel Simion. His olympic resu ...
(Belarus) 21–6
*Defeated
Arturo Santos Reyes
José Arturo Santos Reyes (born 28 December 1985) is a Mexican professional boxer. As an amateur, he won a silver medal at the 2004 Junior World Championships at flyweight and later competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics at featherweight.
Amate ...
(Mexico) RSCO 3
*Defeated Li Yang (China) 14–13
*Lost to
Albert Selimov
Albert Shevketovich Selimov (; born 5 April 1986) is a Russian former amateur boxer of Lezgin descent. He is best known for being the only man to defeat Vasiliy Lomachenko in the amateur ranks. Competing for Russia he won the 2007 world title, ...
Oscar Valdez
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People
* Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms.
* Oscar (Irish mythology), ...
(Mexico) 12–1
*Defeated
Sergey Vodopyanov
Sergey Vodopyanov (russian: Серге́й Водопьянов) (born 20 September 1987 in Taldykorgan, Kazakhstan) is a Russian amateur boxer best known for winning gold in the bantamweight class at the 2007 World Amateur Boxing Championships.
...
José Carlos Ramírez
José is a predominantly Spanish and Portuguese form of the given name Joseph. While spelled alike, this name is pronounced differently in each language: Spanish ; Portuguese (or ).
In French, the name ''José'', pronounced , is an old vernacul ...
(USA) 16–9
*Defeated
Robson Conceicao
Robson may refer to:
People
Surname
* Robson (surname), a surname and list of people with that name
Given name
* Robson Bonnichsen (1940–2004), American anthropologist
*Robson Green (born 1964), British actor
* Róbson (footballer, born 1970) ...
(Brasil) 19–18
*Defeated
Fazliddin Gaibnazarov
Fazliddin Hasanbaevich Gaibnazarov ( uz, Fazliddin Gʻoibnazarov, born 16 June 1991) is an Uzbek professional boxer currently fighting at welterweight. As an amateur fighting at light welterweight, in 2015 he earned silver medals at the world an ...
(Uzbekistan) 18–10
*Defeated
Domenico Valentino
Domenico Valentino (born 17 May 1984 in Marcianise) is a boxer from Italy.
The hard punching Valentino won a bronze medal at lightweight at the 2004 European Amateur Boxing Championships in Pula, Croatia.
He participated in the 2004 Summer Olym ...
(Italy) 17–11
*Defeated
Yasniel Toledo
Yasnier Toledo López (born 15 September 1989 in Camagüey) is a Cuban amateur boxer from Pinar del Río who won the bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics and the PanAm lightweight title in 2011. He is a southpaw.
Career
After winning the 5 ...
Sergey Vodopyanov
Sergey Vodopyanov (russian: Серге́й Водопьянов) (born 20 September 1987 in Taldykorgan, Kazakhstan) is a Russian amateur boxer best known for winning gold in the bantamweight class at the 2007 World Amateur Boxing Championships.
...
(Russia) 37–17
*Defeated
Andrew Selby
Andrew Selby (born 25 December 1988) is a Welsh professional boxer who held the British flyweight title from 2016 to 2019. As an amateur, he won a silver medal at the 2011 World Championships, Bronze at the 2013 World Championships, and gold a ...
(Wales) RSCO
*Defeated Rahim Najafov (Azerbaijan) RSCO
*Defeated Albert Portuondo (Cuba) RSCO 3
Olympic Games results
2008
*Defeated
Albert Selimov
Albert Shevketovich Selimov (; born 5 April 1986) is a Russian former amateur boxer of Lezgin descent. He is best known for being the only man to defeat Vasiliy Lomachenko in the amateur ranks. Competing for Russia he won the 2007 world title, ...
(Russia) 14–7
*Defeated
Bahodirjon Sooltonov
Bahodirjon Sooltonov (Баходирджон Султанов; born January 15, 1985 in Andijan) is an Uzbekistani boxer who competed in the bantamweight (54 kg) division at the 2004 Summer Olympics and won the bronze medal.
Career
At bant ...
(Uzbekistan) 13–1
*Defeated Li Yang (China) 12–3
*Defeated
Yakup Kılıç
Yakup Kılıç (born July 13, 1986) is a Turkish boxer in the featherweight (57 kg) discipline. He is member of Istanbul Fenerbahçe Boxing Club.
Career
Kılıç participated at the 2005 Mediterranean Games in Almería, Spain and won bronz ...
(Turkey) 10–1
*Defeated
Khedafi Djelkhir
Khédafi Djelkhir, or sometimes Khesafi Djelkhir, (born 26 October 1983) is a French featherweight amateur boxer of Algerian origin. He qualified for the 2008 Summer Olympics and won a silver medal at the 2004 European Championships.
Career
Djel ...
(France) 9–1 RSC 1
2012
*1st round bye
*Defeated
Wellington Arias
Wellington Arias Romero (born March 13, 1991 - Santo Domingo) is a Dominican amateur lightweight boxer who competed at the 2012 Olympics.
Career
At the 2010 Central American Games he won Bronze.
At the 2011 World Amateur Boxing Championships (r ...
(Dominican Republic) 15–3
*Defeated
Félix Verdejo
Félix Gabriel Verdejo Sánchez (born May 19, 1993) is a Puerto Rican professional boxer who held the WBO Latino lightweight title from 2015 to 2017. As an amateur he represented Puerto Rico at the 2012 Olympics. In May 2021, Verdejo turned him ...
(Puerto Rico) 14–9
*Defeated
Yasniel Toledo
Yasnier Toledo López (born 15 September 1989 in Camagüey) is a Cuban amateur boxer from Pinar del Río who won the bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics and the PanAm lightweight title in 2011. He is a southpaw.
Career
After winning the 5 ...
(Cuba) 14–11
*Defeated
Han Soon-Chul
Han Soon-Chul (; born December 30, 1984) is an amateur boxer from South Korea who won a silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, and competed at the 2006 Asian Games in the Bantamweight (-54 kg) division winning the silver medal. At the 2010 A ...
(Republic of Korea) 19–9
European Championships results
2008
*Defeated Vladimir Nikiforov (Estonia) 10–0
*Defeated David Oliver Joyce (Ireland) 10–2
*Defeated Hicham Ziouti (France) 2–1
*Defeated
Araik Ambartsumov
Araik Ambartsumov is a Russian amateur boxer of Armenian descent who won the silver medal at the 2008 European Amateur Boxing Championships in the featherweight division.
Russian national championships
Ambartsumov won a gold medal in the 20 ...
Prior to turning professional, Lomachenko competed in the
lightweight
Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing.
Boxing
Professional boxing
The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing.
Notable lightweight boxe ...
division of the
World Series of Boxing
250px, LA Matadors vs. Moscow Dynamo in Hollywood, CA on 4 December 2011. Both amateur boxers compete without vests or head guards.
The World Series of Boxing or WSB was an international boxing tournament that allowed amateur boxers to compete p ...
(WSB) from January to May 2013. Some outlets would later claim that the six fights Lomachenko had in this tournament should have counted towards his professional record, due to WSB being professional boxing by law, with no
headgear
Headgear, headwear, or headdress is the name given to any element of clothing which is worn on one's head, including hats, helmets, turbans and many other types. Headgear is worn for many purposes, including protection against the elements, de ...
and rounds being scored using the ten-point must system according to the regulations set by professional boxing commissions that license the boxers, promoters, and officials.
Professional career
Featherweight
After winning his second Olympic gold medal, Lomachenko made the decision to turn professional. After meeting with several fight promoters, he signed a contract to fight for
Top Rank
Top Rank, Inc. is a boxing promotional company founded by Jabir Herbert Muhammad and Bob Arum, which was incorporated in 1973, and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Since its founding, Top Rank has promoted many world class fighters, including Muh ...
. Lomachenko made his professional debut in United States on 12 October 2013 as part of the undercard to Timothy Bradley vs. Juan Manuel Márquez, defeating Mexican fighter José Ramirez with a fourth-round knockout.
Lomachenko vs. Salido
Lomachenko attempted to make history by winning a world championship in his second fight and breaking
Saensak Muangsurin
Saensak Muangsurin (แสนศักดิ์ เมืองสุรินทร์) (13 August 1950 – 16 April 2009) was a professional boxer from Phetchabun, Thailand. He was a Muay Thai fighter and professional boxer. He was WBC light w ...
's record, who won a junior welterweight world title in his third pro fight in 1975. He challenged veteran boxer
Orlando Salido
Orlando Salido Rivera (born November 16, 1980) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1996 to 2017. He is a multiple-time former world champion in two weight classes, having held the IBF featherweight title in 2010; the WBO fe ...
for
World Boxing Organization
The World Boxing Organization (WBO) is an organization which sanctions professional boxing bouts. It is recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) as one of the four major world championship groups, alongside the World Boxing ...
's featherweight title. The title became vacant after Salido failed to make weight, weighed in 128¼ pounds, over the 126 pound limit. On fight night, he rehydrated to 147 pounds, which was equivalent to the welterweight limit. All of which were still legal since there were no rehydration clauses disclosed in the contract. The fight took place in front of 7,323 at the
Alamodome
The Alamodome is a 64,000-seat domed indoor multi-purpose stadium in San Antonio, Texas. It is located on the southeastern fringe of downtown San Antonio. The facility opened on May 15, 1993, having been constructed at a cost of $186 milli ...
in
San Antonio, Texas
("Cradle of Freedom")
, image_map =
, mapsize = 220px
, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
, subdivision_t ...
on 1 March 2014. Lomachenko would earn $631,000, for what was his second professional bout.
Lomachenko seemed to shy away from engaging Salido throughout most of the fight, probably due to Salido landing numerous low blows and head-butts that the referee failed to call and/or deduct a point. A total of 52 low blows can easily be counted throughout the bout, something that his opponent exploited. A late surge, which saw him injure Salido in the final round, was unable to change the final result, losing by
split decision
A split decision (SD) is a winning criterion in boxing, most commonly in full-contact combat sports, in which two of the three judges score one particular competitor as the winner, while the third judge scores for the other competitor.
A split dec ...
. Two judges had it for Salido 116–112 and 115–113, while the third had it for Lomachenko 115–113. Lomachenko, for his part, stated he felt the decision was fair and accepted blame for not following through with his corner's game plan, promising to learn from the experience and come back stronger. The referee of the fight, Laurence Cole, was roundly criticized by many boxing media outlets for his seemingly ignoring the very many foul blows by Salido, and his perceived failure to properly conduct the match.
Lomachenko vs. Russell Jr.
The WBO title remained vacant due to Salido not making weight. On 20 March 2014 the WBO contacted
Golden Boy Promotions
Golden Boy Promotions, Inc. is an American boxing promotional firm based in Los Angeles, California. The company was established in 2002 by eight-time world champion (in six divisions) Oscar De La Hoya, borrowing his nickname "Golden Boy."
Histo ...
and
Top Rank
Top Rank, Inc. is a boxing promotional company founded by Jabir Herbert Muhammad and Bob Arum, which was incorporated in 1973, and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Since its founding, Top Rank has promoted many world class fighters, including Muh ...
to make them aware that they had 30 days to negotiate a fight between Lomachenko and
Gary Russell Jr.
Gary Allen Russell Jr. (born June 5, 1988) is an American professional boxer who held the World Boxing Council, WBC featherweight title from 2015 to 2022. As of October 2022, he is ranked as the world's seventh best active featherweight by ''The ...
(24-0, 14 KO) for the vacant WBO featherweight title. In an interview, WBO President Paco Valcarcel said that the fight should take place no later than July 2014. Purse bids were scheduled which Golden Boy won with a bid of $1,052,500, while Top Rank bid $1,050,000. Lomachenko was entitled to $631,350 (60%) and Russell Jr. was entitled to $420,900 (40%). Golden Boy CEO
Richard Schaefer
Richard Schaefer is a Swiss professional boxing promoter. He was the former CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, which he left in 2014.
In 2016 he founded his own boxing promotional company Ringstar Sports.
Biography
Schaefer grew up in Switzerland. H ...
challenged Lomachenko's residency. According to the WBO, "If the fight is held in the country of origin, residence or nationality of one of the contenders, the resident contestant shall receive 40 percent and his opponent shall receive 60 percent off the total purse offered." Schaefer claimed Lomachenko resided in
Marina del Rey, California
Marina del Rey (Spanish for "Marina of the King") is an unincorporated seaside community in Los Angeles County, California, with an eponymous harbor that is a major boating and water recreation destination of the greater Los Angeles area. The p ...
. It was later ascertained that Lomachenko had rented a home in California to live in while training, while Ukraine remained his permanent residence.
The fight took place on 21 June at the
StubHub Center
Dignity Health Sports Park is a multi-use sports complex located on the campus of California State University, Dominguez Hills in Carson, California. The complex consists of the 27,000-seat Dignity Health Sports Park soccer stadium, the Dignity ...
in
Carson, California
Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, in the South Bay region of Los Angeles, located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately away from Los Angeles International Airport. Incorporated on February 20, 1968, ...
. Lomachenko defeated Russell Jr. via twelve-round
majority decision
A majority decision (MD) is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking. In a majority decision, two of the three judges agree on which ...
to win the vacant
WBO
The World Boxing Organization (WBO) is an organization which sanctions professional boxing bouts. It is recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) as one of the four major world championship groups, alongside the World Boxing ...
featherweight title. Judge Lisa Giampa scored the fight a 114–114 draw, but judges Max DeLuca and Pat Russell scored the fight 116–112 in favour of Lomachenko. Lomachenko used his power and swift skills to maintain control of the fight until the final bell. Lomachenko began to hurt Russell Jr. more in the later rounds with power shots. Russell Jr. landed only 10% of his punches thrown, with a lot of combinations being missed or blocked. Lomachenko landed 183 of 597 punches thrown (31%) and Russell Jr. landed 83 of his 806 thrown. With this victory, Lomachenko joined
Saensak Muangsurin
Saensak Muangsurin (แสนศักดิ์ เมืองสุรินทร์) (13 August 1950 – 16 April 2009) was a professional boxer from Phetchabun, Thailand. He was a Muay Thai fighter and professional boxer. He was WBC light w ...
as the only other boxer to have won a world title in the quickest amount of time since turning professional, accomplishing the feat in just his third professional bout. The fight averaged 578,000 viewers.
Lomachenko vs. Piriyapinyo
Lomachenko made his first title defense against
mandatory challenger In professional boxing and some other combat sports, a mandatory challenger is an opponent whom a champion must either fight or be forced to vacate their title as champion. A mandatory defence is the opposite of a voluntary defence, where the champi ...
Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo
Suriya Tatakhun, who boxes as Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo (nickname: ''klang'' (กลาง); born in Amnat Charoen District (presently: Amnat Charoen Province), Ubon Ratchathani Province, Thailand) is a Thai professional boxer who fights at feathe ...
of Thailand. This fight took place on the undercard of the Pacquiao vs. Algieri on
HBO PPV
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television, premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office busi ...
bout on November 22, 2014 at the
Cotai Arena
The Cotai Arena is an indoor arena located on the premises of The Venetian Macao, on the Cotai Strip, in Macau, China. It opened in 2007 with a seating capacity of 15,000. The arena was known as Venetian Arena from 2007 to 2010, when it was renam ...
Macao
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
. Although Piritapinyo's record of 52 wins and 1 loss made the fight sound challenging for Lomachenko, the only time he stepped up in his 11-year career was in 2012 against Chris John, which he lost via unanimous decision. Lomachenko handled his opponent easily, hurting him a few times and scoring a knockdown at the end of the fourth round. In the seventh round, Lomachenko stopped using his left hand; it was later confirmed that he injured that hand. Lomachenko won a unanimous decision with the scores of 120–107 on all three of the judges' scorecards. Lomachenko landed 368 of 1006 punches thrown (37%) and Piriyapinyo landed 94 of his 501 thrown (19%).
Lomachenko vs. Rodríguez
It was announced prior to Lomachenko's mandatory fight against Piriyapinyo that the winner would next fight 28 year old Puerto Rican boxer Gamalier Rodríguez. Rodriguez earned the title shot after knocking out Martin Cardona. The fight was announced to take place on 2 May 2015 on the under-card of Mayweather-Pacquiao at the
MGM Grand Garden Arena
The MGM Grand Garden Arena (originally known as the MGM Grand Garden Special Events Center) is a 17,000-seat multi-purpose arena located within the MGM Grand Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip.
Sporting events
From its opening on December 18, 1993 ...
. Prior to the fight, Rodriguez was on a 17-fight winning streak dating back to 2010, where the fight resulted in a first round technical draw. Top Rank announced before the fight that Lomachenko had signed a five-year contract extension. On fight night, Lomachenko retained his WBO title against Rodriguez via a ninth-round KO victory. Lomachenko's speed and precision was too much for Rodriguez, who took a knee twice in the fight, once in the seventh and again in the ninth, which ended the bout. He was also docked a point by referee in fifth round for a low blow. Lomachenko landed 227 of 586 punches thrown (39%) compared to Rodriguez who landed only 55 of 285 (19%). After the fight, Lomachenko spoke through a translator about his performance, "I was just boxing for the fans, having a good time out there." Top Rank were hoping to match Lomachenko with then-WBA featherweight champion
Nicholas Walters
Nicholas "Tha Axe Man" Walters (born 4 January 1986) is a Jamaican professional boxer. He held the WBA featherweight title from 2012 to 2015 and challenged once for the WBO junior lightweight title in 2016.
Personal life
Born in Montego Bay ...
in a unification fight. Lomachenko had a $750,000 purse for the defence.
Brandon Rios
Brandon may refer to:
Names and people
*Brandon (given name), a male given name
* Brandon (surname), a surname with several different origins
Places
Australia
*Brandon, a farm and 19th century homestead in Seaham, New South Wales
*Brandon, Q ...
undercard on
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
against #7 WBO ranked 24 year old Romulo Koasicha. The fight took place on 7 November 2015 at the
Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino
Mandalay Bay is a 43-story luxury resort and casino at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned by Vici Properties and The Blackstone Group and operated by MGM Resorts International. It was developed by Circus Circus ...
in
Paradise, Nevada
Paradise is an unincorporated town and census-designated place (CDP) in Clark County, Nevada, United States, adjacent to the city of Las Vegas. It was formed on December 8, 1950. Its population was 191,238 at the 2020 census, making it the fif ...
. He overwhelmed, dominated and stopped Koasicha in the tenth round on a body shot. In the post fight interview, Lomachenko told of how he wanted to put on a good show, "I was just having fun in there, "If I really wanted to knock him out, I would have done it earlier. I was having a good time, but I knew the end would be on a body shot. I just didn't know which one." Lomachenko earned a career high $750,000 for the fight and out landed Koasicha by 259 punches. Compubox stats showed that Lomachenko dominated throughout, landing 334 of his 717 punches thrown (47%). Koasicha only managed to land 75 of 607 (12%) and earned $35,000 for the loss. The loss ended Koasicha's run of 4 straight wins and he suffered his first stoppage defeat.
Junior lightweight
Lomachenko vs. Martinez
Following a third successful defense, Lomachenko, still the reigning WBO featherweight champion decided to move up weight to junior lightweight to challenge Román Martínez for his WBO title on 11 June 2016 at the
Madison Square Garden Theater
The Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden is a theater located in New York City's Madison Square Garden. It seats between 2,000 and 5,600, and is used for concerts, shows, sports, meetings, and other events. It is located beneath the main Madison ...
. Martinez was coming off a draw against Orlando Salido in September 2015, after he controversially defeated him in their first fight in April 2015 for the WBO title. Lomachenko became the fastest boxer to win a world title in two weight divisions knocking out Martinez in the 5th round of the world title fight. Lomachenko dominated the fight from the start with superior footwork, hand speed and slick punching from different angles. According to
CompuBox
CompuBox is the name of a computerized punches scoring system run by two operators. CompuBox is used in boxing matches around the world.
Background
The system is based on a computer program, originally named FightStat, developed by Jon Gibbs in ...
, Lomachenko out-landed Martinez 87 to 34. After the fight, Lomachenko called out
Orlando Salido
Orlando Salido Rivera (born November 16, 1980) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1996 to 2017. He is a multiple-time former world champion in two weight classes, having held the IBF featherweight title in 2010; the WBO fe ...
, "Hey Salido, I'm ready to fight you at any time, before the Vargas fight, I told him to win the fight but I never told him I wasn't going to fight him if he didn't, so let's do it. I want to revenge Salido for my fans and give them a win over him." Lomachenko was paid $850,000 for the bout, at the time a career-high purse.
Lomachenko vs. Walters
After failing to make the fight happen earlier in the year,
Top Rank
Top Rank, Inc. is a boxing promotional company founded by Jabir Herbert Muhammad and Bob Arum, which was incorporated in 1973, and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Since its founding, Top Rank has promoted many world class fighters, including Muh ...
vice president Carl Moretti confirmed on September 28 that Lomachenko would defend his WBO title against 30 year old unbeaten Jamaican boxer
Nicholas Walters
Nicholas "Tha Axe Man" Walters (born 4 January 1986) is a Jamaican professional boxer. He held the WBA featherweight title from 2012 to 2015 and challenged once for the WBO junior lightweight title in 2016.
Personal life
Born in Montego Bay ...
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
on 26 November on HBO. In previous negotiations, Walters turned down a career-high $550,000 purse, even after Lomachenko offered him a further $300,000 from his own purse if Walters won. HBO provided the remainder of Walter's purse for the fight to go ahead. The event marked Bob Arum's 2,000th promoted card, as well as celebrating his 50th anniversary as a promoter.
After Lomachenko dominated the first six rounds with his movement, he threw more combination punches in the seventh which left Walters visibly shaken. Lomachenko won the fight after Walters retired on his stool at the end of the seventh round. Upon returning to his corner, Walters got up and walked to referee Tony Weeks, where he reiterated twice he did not want to continue. A lot of boos followed the confirmation of the fight result as Walters seemed to back himself up for not returning for round 8, blaming his inactivity in the ring, "Listen to me, if I get the chance to fight two or three fights leading up to this fight, I'll definitely take him on in different circumstances where we are more active and definitely beat him but it was all him tonight... he fought me with three fights this year. So it was all him tonight... Nothing take away from him, he's a very good fighter, I learned a lot from fighting him and it was seven rounds of beautiful boxing until my corner decided to end it."
CompuBox stats showed Lomachenko landed 114 of 437 punches thrown (26 percent) while Walters landed 49 of 264 (19 percent). Lomachenko earned his first $1 million purse. Following the post fight, Arum told ESPN, he would like to make a rematch with Salido next, followed by a lightweight title fight against Terry Flanagan and then a super fight with
Manny Pacquiao
Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao Sr. (; born December17, 1978) is a Filipino politician and former professional boxer. Nicknamed "PacMan", he is regarded as one of the greatest professional boxers of all time. He served as a Senator of the Philip ...
. The fight drew 761,000 viewers on HBO.
Lomachenko vs. Sosa
On 2 February 2017, Bob Arum spoke to
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
. After failing to make a match up with WBA (Super) champion Jezreel Corrales, he announced Lomachenko's next fight would take place on 8 April at the
MGM National Harbor
MGM National Harbor is a casino hotel in National Harbor, Maryland, just outside of Washington, D.C. It opened on December 8, 2016, constructed at a cost of $1.4 billion. It is owned by Vici Properties and operated by MGM Resorts International.
...
in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Jason Sosa
Jason Sosa (born March 10, 1988) is an American former professional boxer of Puerto Rican descent, who held the WBA (Regular) super featherweight title from 2016 to 2017.
Professional boxing career
Sosa made his professional debut in Novembe ...
. This would have been Sosa's third defence of his secondary title, but on 16 February, he vacated the title. Lomachenko weighed 129.6 pounds. Sosa weighed in at 130.4 pounds, he then stripped down naked and still over weighed at 130.2 and was given the time to trim the extra weight. He later returned to the Maryland commission's scale and successfully made weight exactly 130 pounds allowing himself to challenge for the WBO title. The fight headlined HBO ''World Championship Boxing''. In front of a sell-out crowd of 2,828, mostly Ukrainian, Lomachenko successfully retained his WBO title for a second time after Sosa failed to return for round 10 when his trainer pulled him out. The bout was similar to Lomachenko's previous fight with Walters, who also pulled out. Lomachenko's flashy style and fast combinations won him the rounds. Sosa appeared more hurt in round 8 when he was hit hard on the body.
Sosa was the most successful opponent Lomachenko had fought since Salido in terms of landing punches. He landed 68 of his 286 thrown (24%). Lomachenko landed 275 of 696 punches (40%). Sosa's trainer, Raul Rivas explained why he pulled him out of the fight, "It was an accumulation of too many punches. I didn't want to get Jason hurt. He was out of the fight." Lomachenko said he wanted to follow this victory by only fighting current world champions at super featherweight for a chance to unify the division or he would move up lightweight. Lomachenko's purse for the fight was $800,000. The fight peaked at 886,000 viewers
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
and averaged 832,000 viewers. These numbers showed an increase in viewership for Lomachenko from his last fight on HBO against Walters.
Lomachenko vs. Marriaga
On 30 June 2017 Top Rank announced that a deal was in place for Lomachenko to make a third defense of his WBO title against Colombian former featherweight world title challenger
Miguel Marriaga
Miguel Ángel Marriaga Herrera (born June 6, 1984) is a Venezuelan professional basketball player.
Professional career
In his pro career, Marriaga has played in the South American professional club basketball system, 2nd-tier South American Bask ...
, who was coming off a loss and moving up to super featherweight. It was confirmed that the fight would take place live on
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
on August 5, 2017 at the
Microsoft Theater
The Microsoft Theater (formerly Nokia Theatre L.A. Live) is a music and theater venue in downtown Los Angeles, California, at L.A. Live. The theater auditorium seats 7,100 and holds one of the largest indoor stages in the United States.
History ...
in Los Angeles. Carl Moretti of Top Rank stated that Salido had initially turned down a $720,000 purse to fight Lomachenko in a rematch. Even after negotiations to meet his financial needs, Salido still denied the offer due to other problems, mentioning weight and hand issues.
In front of 4,102 people, Lomachenko dominated the fight from the opening bell and proved too much for Marriaga, dropping him twice in the fight, before Marriaga's corner stopped the fight after round 7. Lomachenko retained his WBO title for the third time. The first knockdown came towards the end of the third round when Lomachenko landed a straight left to Marriaga, who was off balance. Marriaga got up straight away and didn't appear hurt. In the fourth round, an accidental clash of heads opened up a cut above Lomachenko's left eye. In the following round, Lomachenko protested to referee Jack Reiss, claiming he was being hit low and headbutted. In the seventh round, Lomachenko landed body shots and uppercuts, eventually dropping Marriaga for the second time with a left hook at 2 minutes and 59 seconds of round 7. Marriaga beat the count and walked towards his corner. The referee waved an end to the fight moments later. Although it was a corner retirement, the
California State Athletic Commission
The California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) regulates amateur and professional boxing, amateur and professional kickboxing and professional mixed martial arts (MMA) throughout the State by licensing all participants and supervising the events. ...
ruled it a KO win. Lomachenko earned a $750,000 purse for the fight, compared to the $50,000 received by Marriaga.
During the post fight interviews, Marriaga praised Lomachenko, "He dominated the fight. I connected with some good punches, but I couldn't get the result I was looking for. I wanted to continue the fight, but my corner stopped the fight. He basically overwhelmed me with pressure." Bob Arum also showed his admiration of Lomachenko, comparing him to former heavyweight world champion and legend
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...
, who had 27 of his professional fight promoted by Arum. He said "I never saw anything like this. He's unbelievable. Not only does he have the knowledge, he has the skill set that I've never seen before. Fast, reflexes, everything and he really entertains. Who else did that? Muhammad Ali." The fight averaged 728,000 viewers on ESPN. The move from HBO to ESPN was done to expose Lomachenko and gain more viewership, but was down by 104,000 compared to Lomachenko's last fight against Sosa on HBO. Viewership was adversely affected by a channel switch when the broadcast began and the time at which their main event started.
Lomachenko vs. Rigondeaux
On 6 August, Arum stated that Lomachenko would fight for a third time in 2017, likely on 9 or 23 December. When asked who the potential options were, Arum stated, "Well, there's a few guys. (Guillermo) Rigondeaux if he answers Dino (Duva's) call. There's (Orlando) Salido, who's sniffing around and the third is (Miguel) Berchelt." Arum also mentioned lightweight contender
Ray Beltrán
Raymundo Beltrán (born July 23, 1981) is a Mexican professional boxer. He held the WBO lightweight title in 2018. At regional level, he held the WBC– NABF lightweight title from 2016 to 2018.
Professional career
Born in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, ...
, but said he would like to capture a world title at lightweight before a potential fight with Lomachenko. Salido informed his manager Sean Gibbons, that he had no issues with fighting Lomachenko in December. Gibbons believed Lomachenko needed Salido more than Salido would need Lomanchenko, as Lomachenko was looking to raise TV ratings and sell out a 10,000 capacity arena. On 14 August, Arum spoke to
LA Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
and confirmed either Rigondeaux or Salido would be Lomachenko's next opponent. He stated if the bout with Rigondeaux was made, it would likely take place at the Madison Square Garden Theatre and a potential rematch with Salido would take place in Los Angeles.
On 21 August Arum stated the Lomachenko and Rigondeaux camps were closing in on finalizing a deal for December 9. A fight with the two-weight world champion and reigning
super bantamweight Super bantamweight, also known as junior featherweight, is a weight class in professional boxing, contested from and up to .
There were attempts by boxing promoters in the 1920s to establish this weight class, but few sanctioning organizations or ...
title holder, a two-time Olympic Gold Medalist and one of the most successful amateur boxers ever, would take place at 130 pounds. The fight was officially confirmed on 15 September. It was since confirmed that the fight would in fact be at the Theater, headlining an ESPN televised card. On 18 November, Carl Moretti of Top Rank revealed a re-hydration clause on the contract. Both fighters agreed to weigh in at 09:00 on the morning of the fight, where they would not be able to exceed 138 pounds. Any fighter over the limit would face a penalty of more than $10,000. On fight night, Lomachenko weighed 137.4 pounds and Rigondeaux weighed 130 pounds.
In front of a sell-out crowd of 5,102 at the Theater, Lomachenko retained his WBO title, dominating the fight with superior boxing skills, forcing Rigondeaux to retire on his stool after round 6. Rigondeaux stated he had broken the top of his left hand in round two, which was the reason he did not come out for round 7. Rigondeax became Lomachenko's fourth consecutive opponent to retire on his stool. The loss also marked the first time Rigondeaux had lost since 2003, when he was still an amateur. At the time of stoppage, Lomachenko was ahead on all three judges' scorecards, 60–53, 59–54, and 59–54.
In the post-fight interviews, Lomachenko was asked about Rigondeaux being his fourth consecutive opponent to retire on his stool, to which Lomachenko joked, "Maybe I should change my second name, now my name is 'No Mas Chenko'." He also went on to say, "This is not his weight, so it's not a big win for me. But he's a good fighter. He's got great skills. I adjusted to his style, low blows and all." Speaking to an interpreter, Rigondeaux said, "I lost, no excuses. I injured the top of my left hand in the second round. He's a very technical fighter. He's explosive. I'm gonna come back because that's what I do. The weight was not a factor in this fight. It was the injury to my hand." According to CompuBox statistics, Lomachenko landed 55 of 339 punches thrown (16%) and Rigondeax landed 15 of his 178 thrown (8%), landing no more than 3 punches per round. For the fight, Lomachenko was guaranteed a purse of $1.2 million whereas Rigondeaux earned a $400,000 purse. On December 12, Dino Duva of Roc Nation Sport, confirmed that Rigondeaux had bruised his hand and not fractured it, as initially stated. The card averaged 1.73 million viewers on ESPN, which did not include ESPN Deportes or the online streaming service.
Lightweight
The ''
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
'' Lance Pugmire was told by Bob Arum on 26 January 2018 that Lomachenko would have his next fight at lightweight. Arum stated he was unable to make unification fights at super featherweight against WBC champion
Miguel Berchelt
Miguel Ángel Berchelt Cervera (born 17 November 1991) is a Mexican professional boxer
Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the bo ...
and WBA titleholder Alberto Machado which was the main reason for the move up.
Lomachenko vs. Linares
On 30 January, Arum told
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
that negotiations had begun in December 2017 for a fight between Lomachenko and WBA, ''
The Ring Magazine
''The Ring'' (often called ''The Ring'' magazine or ''Ring'' magazine) is an American boxing magazine that was first published in 1922 as a boxing and wrestling magazine. As the sporting legitimacy of professional wrestling came more into questio ...
'' lightweight champion
Jorge Linares
Jorge Luis Linares Palencia (born 22 August 1985) is a Venezuelan professional boxer. He has held world championships in three weight classes, including the WBC featherweight title from 2007 to 2008; the WBA super featherweight title from 20 ...
after speaking to Teiken Promotions, Linares' lead promoter, with the fight to take place on either 28 April or 12 May 2018. The fight would main event an ESPN card. Arum was pushing for the fight to take place at Madison Square Garden on 12 May 2018. The reason behind the date was explained by Arum, "May 12th is an extraordinarily important date for ESPN programming. It's right in the middle of the basketball playoffs." Carl Moretti called Eric Gomez of Golden Boy informing them of the date. Gomez stated they were happy with the fight, however the date of 12 May was not a good date for them, as they already had plans for that date. HBO would likely air the pay-per-view replay of
Gennady Golovkin
Gennadiy Gennadyevich Golovkin (Cyrillic: ; also spelled Gennady; born 8 April 1982), often known by his nickname "GGG" or "Triple G", is a Kazakhstani professional boxer. He has held multiple middleweight world championships, and is a two-time ...
vs.
Canelo Álvarez
Santos Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez Barragán (; born 18 July 1990) is a Mexican professional boxer. He has won multiple world championships in four weight classes from light middleweight to light heavyweight, including unified titles in three of ...
rematch, along with a live bout. On 17 February, Gomez stated the fight was not called off and Arum would need to be more flexible with the date as Golden Boy accepted Arum's terms that the fight would take place in New York. On 13 March,
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
confirmed that terms had been agreed between both sides. The agreement was reached after ESPN agreed to televise the fight at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT, so it would broadcast before HBO's telecast on the same day. Madison Square Garden in New York City was confirmed as the venue. On 21 March, the fight was officially announced. WBO president Francisco Valcarcel told Lomachenko, regardless of result, he would have 10 days to decide on whether he would return to super featherweight and defend his WBO or vacate. Both boxers weighed in 134.6 pounds.
In front of 10,429 in attendance, Lomachenko survived a knockdown in round 6 to win via TKO in round 10 after a perfectly placed liver shot to claim the WBA (Super) and ''The Ring'' lightweight titles. In doing so he became the fastest fighter ever to win titles in 3 different weight classes (only 12 professional fights) shattering the previous record of 20 held by
Jeff Fenech
Jeff Fenech (born 28 May 1964) is an Australian former professional boxer who competed between 1984 and 2008. He won world titles in three weight divisions, having held the IBF bantamweight title from 1985 to 1987, the WBC super-bantamweight ...
. Lomachenko wore Linares down with his fast shots through the first 9 rounds, before finishing the fight in round 10. Linares slowly beat the count but looked too hurt to continue. Referee Ricky Gonzalez stopped the fight at 2 minutes, 8 seconds of round 10. The loss snapped Linares' 13-fight win streak. At the time of stoppage, two judges had each fighter ahead 86–84 on their respective scorecards and the third judge Julie Lederman had it 85–85 even. After the fight, Lomachenko said, "It was a great fight. That right hand
hat knocked me down
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
it was a great punch. It happens. I prepared for the last few rounds, and my father nd trainer Anatoly Lomachenkotold me, 'You need to go to the body.' Linares is a great champion, and the fight was good for the fans and everybody." Speaking of the knockout punch, Linares said it was 'perfectly landed.' De La Hoya also congratulated Arum on the fight and told Arum it was good experience working together. According to CompuBox Stats, Linares landed 207 of 739 punches thrown (28%), this included 139 power punches landed and a total amount of 77 body shots landed. Lomachenko landed 213 of 627 punches thrown (34%), with 112 jabs. For the fight, Linares was paid a career high $1 million, with Lomachenko receiving a $1.2 million purse. The card averaged 1,024,00 viewers. The fight itself averaged 1,439,000 viewers and peaked at 1,749,000 viewers, making it the most-watched boxing fight on cable television in 2018. On 23 May, Lomachenko officially vacated his WBO super featherweight title.
Lomachenko vs. Pedraza
After winning the WBA (Super) and The Ring lightweight titles, promoter Arum stated that Lomachenko would defend the belts on 25 August 2018 at The Forum in
Inglewood, California
Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 107,762. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. The city is in the South Bay ...
. A possible unification with WBO titleholder Raymundo Beltran was a likely possibility. After vacating his WBO title, Arum stated Lomachenko would not fight on 25 August. It was later revealed that earlier in the bout against Linares, Lomachenko suffered a torn labrum in his right shoulder. He underwent surgery on 30 May at the Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. According to Lomachenko, the shoulder popped out and then back in during the second round. A new return date of December 2018 was targeted. On 10 July, Lomachenko revealed he would return on 25 August. However, on 31 July, his manager Egis Klimas told The Boxing Beat on
ESPN+
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
, Lomachenko would make his ring return on 1 December. In the interview, he also stated it would likely be a unification fight against the winner of the Raymundo Beltran vs. José Pedraza bout, which was scheduled to be contested on 25 August. Pedraza defeated Beltran via unanimous decision, winning the WBO title and setting up a fight with Lomachenko. In September, ''The Ring'' magazine announced the unification fight between Lomachenko and Pedraza would take place on 8 December 2018 at the
Hulu Theatre
Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television serie ...
in New York City.
For the first time as a professional, Lomachenko unified in a weight division as he beat Pedraza via unanimous decision to retain his WBA (Super) title and claim Pedraza's WBO lightweight title, before a sellout crowd of 5,312. Lomachenko coasted to victory with the three judges scoring the bout 119–107, 117–109, and 117–109 in his favour. The first half of the fight was a rather tentative and tactical affair with neither fighter making a statement, however it was Lomachenko who was landing the more cleaner and points scoring shots. By mid-fight Lomachenko looked to have a solid lead on the cards, but the fight seemed closer in the ring. It was during the championship rounds where the fight came alive. Round 10 was arguably Pedraza's best as he landed a hard right hand to Lomachenko's body. He followed up with a few more shots to the body. Round 11, which was the round of the fight, saw Lomachenko come out quick and land a total of 42 power shots, his busiest round of the fight. In the middle of the round, Lomachenko shook Pedraza following a left hand, which eventually followed with a right hand to the body, dropping Pedraza. Although he beat the count, Pedraza was dropped a second time with over 10 seconds to go following a left to the body. Again, Pedraza beat the count and survived the round. Pedraza used the final round to stay out of reach and take Lomachenko the 12 round distance. The fight ended Lomachenko's 8-fight stoppage streak, in which he saw four consecutive opponents retire on their stool in between rounds. According to CompuBox stats, Lomachenko landed 240 of 738 punches thrown (33%), and Pedraza landed a very low 111 of his 931 punches thrown (12%). 506 of Pedraza's shots thrown where jabs in which only 31 landed. Lomachenko landed 158 power punches throughout the fight.
In the post-fight interview, Lomachenko credited Pedraza as being a tough and tricky fighter, which is why he couldn't score the stoppage victory. He added, "It was my dream to unify titles. It was my next goal. I can now focus on my next chapter." Pedraza was happy with his performance and that he went "12 rounds with the best fighter in the world." He thought the fight was close up until round 11. Arum stated Lomachenko only wanted challenges going forward and would likely next fight in May 2019. The fight averaged 2,013,000 viewers, making it the second most-watched boxing match on American cable or network television in 2018. The fight peaked over 2.1 million viewers and the entire ESPN telecast averaged 1,865,000 viewers. Lomachenko was guaranteed a purse of $1 million, rising to $2 million and Pedraza was guaranteed $350,000, potentially earning closer to $1 million.
Lomachenko vs. Crolla
Within a week of Lomachenko successfully unifying at lightweight, Top Rank president Todd duBoef announced Lomachenko would return to the ring on 12 April 2019 at the
Staples Center
Crypto.com Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. The arena opened on October 17, 1999; it was ...
in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
, headlining Friday night Top Rank Boxing on ESPN. With
Richard Commey
Richard Oblitey Commey (born 10 March 1987) is a Ghanaian professional boxer who held the IBF lightweight title in 2019. He previously held multiple regional lightweight titles including; the Ghanaian title in 2011; the ABU title in 2013; and the ...
and
Isa Chaniev
Isa Аskhabovich Chaniev (russian: Иса Асханович Чаниев; born 2 November 1992, in Sunzhensky, Ingushetia) is a Russian professional boxer who competes in the lightweight division. He has held the IBF Inter-Continental and WBO I ...
set to fight for the vacant IBF lightweight title, it was highly likely that the winner would fight Lomachenko in what would be Lomachenko's second unification fight. Top Rank intended to finalize the deal with promoter
Lou DiBella
Louis John DiBella Jr. (born May 17, 1960) is an American boxing promoter and television/film producer.
Education
DiBella is a graduate of Regis High School (New York City). He then continued his education at Tufts University before pursuing ...
, which would see Commey vs. Chaniev take place on 2 February 2019 at the Ford Center in
Frisco, Texas
Frisco is a city in Collin and Denton counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and about from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Its population was 200,509 at the 2 ...
. By the end of January 2019, purse bids for Lomachenko vs.
Anthony Crolla
Anthony Crolla (born 16 November 1986) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2006 to 2019.. Retrieved 27 March 2017. He held the WBA lightweight title from 2015 to 2016, and challenged once for the unified WBA and WBO ligh ...
were pushed back two days to 6 February 2019 with the minimum bid being $150,000.
Commey defeated Chaniev to become the new IBF lightweight champion, however picked up a hand injury during the fight. His promoter Lou DiBella advised Top Rank, Commey would be out of training for a minimum of two months. This prompted Top Rank to start searching for a new opponent for Lomachenko. On 20 February, it was announced that Lomachenko would defend his WBA (Super), WBO and ''The Ring'' titles against Crolla at the
Staples Center
Crypto.com Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. The arena opened on October 17, 1999; it was ...
in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
on 12 April 2019. The bout, including the full undercard would be streamed live and exclusive on
ESPN+
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
, to mark the one year anniversary of the streaming service. The fight was made official a week later with ticket information. The bout would mark Crolla's first time fighting in the US, having only fought once previously outside of his native UK. It was reported that Lomachenko would earn $1.2 million, but guaranteed closer to $3.2 million. Crolla, who was a heavy 100-1 underdog, had an official purse of $300,000 for the fight, however guaranteed more due to UK TV rights.
In front of 10,101 in attendance, Lomachenko stopped Crolla in the first minute of round 4. The initial two rounds were paced and methodical as Lomachenko visibly started to out-throw Crolla during round 2. In round 3, Lomachenko became overwhelmingly dominant while forcing Crolla to spend a majority of his time against the ropes. With 11 seconds left in the round, Lomachenko's combination was interrupted by referee Jack Reiss. At first glance, Lomachenko, and even the crowd, thought it looked as if Reiss had stopped the fight, causing Lomachenko to celebrate by jumping on the corner ropes. However, Reiss immediately corrected the misunderstanding and forced out commissioners who had climbed into the ring, and resumed the fight after a 10-second count for Crolla — although with 1 second left, the round effectively ended immediately. Between rounds 3 and 4, Reiss explained he'd not actually waved off the fight, and instead called a technical knockdown — he was seen immediately pointing and saying "down". He explained he was accounting for the ropes' aid to Crolla's ability to stand, since if the ropes had been absent Crolla would've been down and it is against the rules for a fighter to have any outside support in standing throughout the entire duration of the fight, thus justifying this rarely used but sanctioned technical knockdown. Because of this, Crolla continued on into round 4 where after briefly trying to rally back he was knocked down in second 52 by a right hook to the temple. Crolla fell to the canvas face-first, unable to break his fall. After what looked to be a 3 to 4 second count by Reiss, the fight was waved off, giving Lomachenko the win and retaining his sanctioned belts. Crolla was unable to participate in the post-fight interviews, but did not decide to immediately go to hospital. According to CompuBox Stats, Lomachenko landed 72 of 249 shots (29%), and Crolla landed only 12 of his 96 thrown (13%), this included 7 power shots, compared to Lomachenko's 58 power shots.
In the post-fight press conference, Lomachenko said he thought it was a clear waving of the fight by Reiss, who had his back to Lomachenko and entered the exchange in a manner intent on protecting Crolla.
Lomachenko vs. Campbell
Lomachenko faced fellow 2012 Olympic gold medallist Luke Campbell on 31 August 2019, at
The O2 Arena
The O2 Arena, commonly known as the O2 (stylised as The O2 arena), is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the centre of the O2 entertainment complex on the Greenwich Peninsula in southeast London. It opened in its present form in 2007. It has the s ...
in London in front of a sold-out crowd of over 18,000. Lomachenko retained the WBA, WBO and The Ring lightweight titles, and gained the vacant WBC lightweight title by defeating Campbell by unanimous decision. He was in fine form, winning by 119–108 on two judges' cards, and 118–109 on the other. Despite being a heavy underdog, Campbell started well and took the first round. Lomachenko soon found his groove, however, and almost had Campbell down in the 5th round but for the bell. Campbell took more shots in round 6, but fired back and the fight remained competitive. Lomachenko knocked down Campbell in the 11th round after a series of body shots followed by a stiff jab. Campbell beat the count, and ultimately survived the round and the fight, receiving credit after the bout for his resilience. In his in-ring interview, Lomachenko called for a lightweight unification fight with the winner of
Richard Commey
Richard Oblitey Commey (born 10 March 1987) is a Ghanaian professional boxer who held the IBF lightweight title in 2019. He previously held multiple regional lightweight titles including; the Ghanaian title in 2011; the ABU title in 2013; and the ...
vs.
Teófimo López
Teófimo Andrés López Rivera (born July 30, 1997) is an American professional boxer. He is a former unified lightweight world champion, having held the IBF title from 2019 to November 2021, and the WBA (Super), WBO, and '' The Ring'' magazi ...
, who contested for the IBF title in December.
Lomachenko vs. López
In September 2020, Lomachenko agreed to fight newly crowned undefeated IBF lightweight champion,
Teófimo López
Teófimo Andrés López Rivera (born July 30, 1997) is an American professional boxer. He is a former unified lightweight world champion, having held the IBF title from 2019 to November 2021, and the WBA (Super), WBO, and '' The Ring'' magazi ...
, on 17 October 2020 at the MGM Grand Conference Center in
Paradise, Nevada
Paradise is an unincorporated town and census-designated place (CDP) in Clark County, Nevada, United States, adjacent to the city of Las Vegas. It was formed on December 8, 1950. Its population was 191,238 at the 2020 census, making it the fif ...
. With no live audience, Lomachenko suffered the second defeat of his career, losing by UD with the scorecards reading 116–112, 117–111, and 119–109. Judge Julie Lederman's scorecard of 119–109, giving Lomachenko only a single round, received significant controversy. The first seven rounds saw López staying behind his jab and going to the body, with Lomachenko offering little in response. In the second half, Lomachenko started coming out more offensively, landing more punches. In the final round, López landed 50 of 98 punches thrown (51%), the most an opponent has landed on Lomachenko in a round. According to CompuBox stats, Lomachenko landed 141 of 321 thrown (44%), while López landed 183 of 659 thrown (28%). Days after the fight, Lomachenko underwent surgery on his right shoulder.
López declined to give Lomachenko a rematch, explaining that "everybody n Lomachenko's campwas being a dick to me, my father. He omachenkodidn't want to put a rematch clause in our contract."
Lomachenko vs. Nakatani
Lomachenko made his comeback in a fight against
Masayoshi Nakatani
Masayoshi Nakatani (中谷 正義, ''Nakatani Masayoshi'', born March 8, 1989) is a Japanese professional boxer. He held the Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation, OPBF lightweight title between 2014 and 2019, and won the World Boxing Organizat ...
on 26 June 2021. Lomachenko and Nakatani both shared a common loss to undefeated unified lightweight champion
Teófimo López
Teófimo Andrés López Rivera (born July 30, 1997) is an American professional boxer. He is a former unified lightweight world champion, having held the IBF title from 2019 to November 2021, and the WBA (Super), WBO, and '' The Ring'' magazi ...
, which Lomachenko cited as the reason why he chose Nakatani as his next opponent, saying, "I want to compare myself with this guy, he was close with ópezin their fight." The fight against Nakatani was only the second fight of Lomachenko's career in which a world title was not at stake, after his professional debut against José Luis Ramírez in 2013. On the night, Lomachenko scored a knockdown in the fifth round en route to a ninth-round technical knockout victory. After the fight, he made clear his intentions of wanting to rematch López in the winter, saying, "December, January, February. I'm waiting."
Lomachenko vs. Commey
In an attempt to put his name back into contention for a shot at his old titles, Lomachenko agreed to face former IBF lightweight champion,
Richard Commey
Richard Oblitey Commey (born 10 March 1987) is a Ghanaian professional boxer who held the IBF lightweight title in 2019. He previously held multiple regional lightweight titles including; the Ghanaian title in 2011; the ABU title in 2013; and the ...
, on 11 December 2021 in New York. On fight night, Lomachenko dropped Commey in the seventh round courtesy of a left hook, later pleading with the corner of the still unsteady Commey to stop the fight. They refused, and Commey survived and went the full 12 rounds, with the judges scoring it 119-108, 119-108, and 117-110, all in favour of Lomachenko. When asked about fighting newly crowned unified lightweight champion,
George Kambosos Jr.
George Kambosos Jr (born 14 June 1993) is an Australian professional boxer who held the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and '' The Ring'' lightweight titles from 2021 to June 2022. As of September 2022, he's ranked as the world's number one lightweight by ...
, who had upset Teofimo Lopez a few weeks previously, Lomachenko jumped at the idea, stating that he 'needs this chance' and would be willing to fly to Australia if necessary. However, on 24 February 2022 Russia launched an invasion of Ukraine and Lomachenko returned to his home country to aid in the war effort. On 20 March, Lomachenko was given permission to leave Ukraine in order to face George Kambosos Jr. in Australia. However, he declined, opting to stay and fight for his country. Kambosos Jr. instead lost his titles to WBC champion
Devin Haney
Devin Miles Haney (; born November 17, 1998) is an American professional boxer. He is the current undisputed lightweight champion, having held the WBC title since 2019 and the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and ''Ring'' titles since June 2022. As of J ...
, who thereby became the undisputed lightweight champion.
Lomachenko vs. Ortiz
On 7 July 2022,
Top Rank
Top Rank, Inc. is a boxing promotional company founded by Jabir Herbert Muhammad and Bob Arum, which was incorporated in 1973, and is based in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Since its founding, Top Rank has promoted many world class fighters, including Muh ...
president, Todd DuBoef, indicated Lomachenko was planning a return to the boxing ring in October. 29 October 2022 saw Lomachenko step back into the ring to face former sparring partner, 26 year old undefeated Jamaine Ortiz. After a very tough 12 round battle, Lomachenko emerged victorious with a unanimous decision, the three judges scoring the fight 115-113, 116-112, and 117-111. With the win, Lomachenko was poised to next challenge undisputed champion Devin Haney, who was ringside for the fight and expressed interest in fighting Lomachenko.
Personal life
Lomachenko is married to Olena, and they have two children. As of 2019 (and since at least 2016), he lives in
Camarillo, California
Camarillo ( ) is a city in Ventura County in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 70,741, an increase of 5,540 from the 65,201 counted in the 2010 Census. Camarillo is named for brothers Juan an ...
and trains in nearby
Oxnard
Oxnard () is a city in Ventura County, California, United States. On California's South Coast, it is the most populous city in Ventura County and the 22nd-most-populous city in California. Incorporated in 1903, Oxnard lies approximately west ...
, just north of Los Angeles.
The face tattooed on Lomachenko's torso is that of his father and trainer, Anatoly Lomachenko.
During the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...
, Lomachenko joined the Ukrainian army.Boxing pound-for-pound great Vasiliy Lomachenko enlists with Ukrainian forces to fight Russia invasion
Metro
Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to:
Geography
* Metro (city), a city in Indonesia
* A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center
Public transport
* Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...
(27 February 2022) After travelling back to Ukraine from Greece,Top boxer Vasiliy Lomachenko joins territorial defense battalion in Ukraine
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi
Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi ( uk, Бі́лгород-Дністро́вський, Bílhorod-Dnistróvskyy, ; ro, Cetatea Albă), historically known as Akkerman ( tr, Akkerman) or under different names, is a city, municipality and port situated on ...
on 27 February 2022. Lomachenko was in Greece when the invasion began (on 24 February 2022), and his flight home to Ukraine the next day was delayed due to air traffic being grounded. He managed to get into Ukraine by flying to
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
and travelling through
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
on 26 February 2022. He followed Ukrainian brothers
Wladimir Klitschko
Wladimir Klitschko; an equivalent English spelling is Vladimir Klichko . His full name in uk, label=Ukrainian is, Володимир Володимирович Кличко, Volodymyr Volodymyrovych Klychko, . ( uk, Володимир Вол ...
and
Vitali Klitschko
Vitali Volodymyrovych Klitschko (; uk, Віта́лій Володи́мирович Кличко́ ; born 19 July 1971) is a Ukrainian politician and former professional boxer who serves as mayor of Kyivswitch stances. Lomachenko's inspirations include
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...
,
Mike Tyson
Michael Gerard Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005. Nicknamed "Iron Mike" and "Kid Dynamite" in his early career, and later known as "The Baddest Man on the Planet", Tyson is cons ...
, and
Roy Jones Jr.
Roy Levesta Jones Jr. (born January 16, 1969) is an American former professional boxer who holds dual American and Russian citizenship. He competed in boxing from 1989 to 2018, and held multiple world championships in four weight classes, inc ...
Professional boxing record
See also
*
List of featherweight boxing champions Championship recognition
Public Acclamation: 1884 to 1921
Champions were recognized by wide public acclamation. A heavyweight champion was a boxer who had a notable win over another notable boxer and then went without defeat. Retirements from the ...
*
List of super-featherweight boxing champions
This is a list of Super featherweight boxing champions, as recognized by boxing organizations:
* The World Boxing Association (WBA), established in 1921 as the National Boxing Association (NBA).
* The World Boxing Council (WBC), established in 19 ...
*
List of lightweight boxing champions
This is a list of world lightweight boxing champions by organization, as recognized by four of the better-known sanctioning organizations:
* The World Boxing Association (WBA), founded in 1921 as the National Boxing Association (NBA),
* The World ...
*
List of boxing triple champions
In boxing, a triple champion is a boxer who has won world titles in three weight classes. For most of the 20th century it was a remarkable and rare achievement accomplished by only a handful of fighters. Beginning in the 1970s, triple champions hav ...