By Huck Allen: Vasily Lomachenko is hoping his fight this Saturday night against Richard Commey will pave the way for him to get a chance to become the undisputed lightweight champion against 4-belt champion George Kambosos Jr. in early 2022.
The former three-division world champion Lomachenko (15-2, 11 KOs) and Commey (30-3, 27 KOs) are headlining on ESPN this Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Lomachenko’s promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank said today that he believes the World Boxing Organization will order WBO lightweight champion Kambosos Jr (20-0, 10 KOs) to defend against Loma next. Whether Kambosos complies is another matter.
He may choose to go in the direction of more lucrative fights against Devin Haney or Gervonta ‘Tank’ rather than a dangerous contest against Lomachenko.
Arum states that he’s willing to take the Kambosos vs. Lomachenko fight in Australia, as long as the pandemic allows the match to occur in that country.
Eddie Hearn, the promoter for WBC lightweight champion Devin Haney, has openly been talking about setting up a fight between him and Kambosos next in the UK, U.S, or the Middle East.
It’s believed the Matchroom Boxing promoter has a good shot of getting the fight for Haney against Kambosos.
WBA ‘regular’ lightweight champion Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis is believed to be the #1 money fight available for Kambosos due to Tank’s colossal popularity and being a pay-per-view attraction in the U.S.
Lomachenko wants ALL 4 belts
“My father taught me that if you’re strong, you never talk about it,” said Lomachenko to Venum. “Right now, nobody wants to sign a contract for a fight with me.
“You can’t be world champion if you hold only one belt,” Lomachenko continued. “You’re world champion, a REAL world champion if you hold four belts. Three, two, or one – you are not a champion. You’re close to being world champion, but you are not a champion
“Talking with Haney, it was just talk on the media. When we talked about the real deal with the contract, we didn’t do this. I don’t want to change myself. I don’t want to play this game with their rules,” said Lomachenko.
It would be great to see Lomachenko get a chance to fight Kambosos for his four belts, considering it would give the boxing world a chance to see two highly skilled fighters mix it up for all the marbles.
The Lomachenko vs. Kambosos fight winner would still need to face WBC lightweight champion Devin Haney to be called a true undisputed champion, but the boxing world won’t care if that fight never happens.
That is to say; the fans will recognize the Kambosos – Lomachenko winner as the undisputed champion anyway without the need for a fight against Haney.
Loma believes Teofimo didn’t beat him
“It was very fun, and then I saw this highlight,” said Loma on his fight with Teofimo Lopez. “In this highlight, it wasn’t clean punch. It was an elbow, shoulder, and one or two punches on the body, that’s it—no clean punches on the head.
“I think I understand boxing. I did NOT lose this fight on points. This loss gave me more power and a lot of motivation. A lot of great boxers lose, and after that, they come back.
“You need to continue your way,” said Lomachenko. “When you see news about boxing, about a fight and hear about this guy and this guy will be fighting together,” Lomachenko continued.
“It wasn’t only a choice of this guy and this guy. It was a choice of channel, promoter, and other guys.
“They can do what they want, and I can do what I can. Two things, me and my father because he provided me with all the boxing skills I have, and, of course, with my team that I train to prepare me to fight.
“In history, we have a lot of top boxers,” Lomachenko said. “My favorite is Roy Jones, Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson when I was a kid. Roy Jones, a very high reaction boxer and power and filling distance.
“Muhammad Ali, his footwork, speed, high boxing IQ, and high-level skills. I still have a goal; it’s the undisputed world champion. I believe only in God. If God gives me a second chance, I’ll take this chance,” said Lomachenko.
