Vasyl Lomachenko (8-1, 6 KOs) takes another step in his evolution Saturday night in downtown Los Angeles when he defends his WBO 130-pound title against Colombia's Miguel Marriaga (25-2, 21 KOs) on ESPN. A large U.S. audience will be able to see the fighter with a talent compared to Muhammad Ali by Bob Arum, who promoted both fighters.
Lomachenko turned pro in 2013, and his career has built steadily on his peerless amateur success. While he captured the boxing world's imagination with his devastating performance in Beijing in 2008, Lomachenko says he grew tired of waiting around for four years by the time he finally got to London and "took my second gold medal."
Along with his relocation to the U.S., Lomachenko had to adjust his fight preparations to the demands of the pro game. After spending years training to fight several opponents in a two-week tournament, he now fights only three or four times a year.
"When I was an amateur boxer, you (might not) know your next opponent," he said. "You have to be ready for anything. That was much more difficult. Now I can know all about my opponent. I study everything he can do."
And his California training camp provides Lomachenko with everything he needs to dominate.
His father, Anatoly, supervises his preparations with a team of coaches and trainers. His diet is strictly monitored through pre-prepared meals, although he still fires up his barbecue for steaks on his days off. His coaches also engage him in brain-teasing mental puzzles designed to force him to think critically outside the ring.
Lomachenko shrugs off the idea that he took a bout with Marriaga only after the world's top fighters around his weight class declined to take him on despite the financial might of his promoter, Top Rank. Cuba's Guillermo Rigondeaux, another two-time Olympic gold medalist, is among the few big-name fighters daring to call him out.
But Lomachenko responds to the 36-year-old Rigondeaux with a wit that reflects his growing fluency in English:
"I don't think that fight is going to bring me a lot of glory, because after that fight, everybody is going to be saying I beat an old, little guy."
2023-10-19 03:20:36
