Vasiliy Lomachenko

Vasyl Lomachenko was born on February 17, 1988, in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, Ukraine. His journey in the world of professional boxing began under the tutelage of his father, Anatoly Lomachenko, a former amateur boxer who instilled in him the values and techniques that would later form the foundation of his boxing career. Lomachenko’s amateur career was nothing short of extraordinary, boasting a record of 396 wins and just one loss, and culminating in two Olympic gold medals: the first one he claimed in the featherweight division at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and the second as a lightweight at the 2012 London Olympics. In addition to his Olympic glory, Lomachenko also secured a gold medal in the World Championships in Milan in 2009, asserting his dominance in the world of amateur boxing.

Making his professional debut in 2013, Vasyl Lomachenko quickly rose through the ranks, earning the WBO featherweight title in just his third fight. Even after a setback against Orlando Salido in 2014, he demonstrated his resilience by clinching the WBO super featherweight title in 2016 and the WBA lightweight title in 2018. His streak of triumphs continued into the 2019-2021 period, successfully defending his WBA and WBO lightweight titles against Anthony Crolla and later achieving victory over Luke Campbell for the vacant WBC lightweight title. However, in a surprising turn of events, Lomachenko faced a defeat against Teofimo Lopez in 2020, losing his unified lightweight titles. Despite this setback, Lomachenko returned to the ring in 2021 with a decisive win over Masayoshi Nakatani, Richard Commey, and then in 2022 with another victory over Jamaine Ortiz. All in all, his unique fighting style, reminiscent of boxing greats like Muhammad Ali and Sugar Ray Leonard, his swift footwork, and his ability to effortlessly switch between orthodox and southpaw stances, have made him a formidable contender in the ring.

Lomachenko’s impressive list of accolades also includes the Ring Magazine’s Fighter of the Year award in 2017 and 2018, and the Boxing Writers Association of America’s Fighter of the Year award in 2017. Despite facing challenges, his unwavering dedication and commitment to his craft have won him the respect of fans and peers alike.

Footwork is the name of the game for Lomachenko. As a right-handed southpaw, Lomachenko is always looking to secure advantageous positions over his opponent. He likes to achieve this by stepping to different angles where he can hit his opponent and they can’t hit him. This is much easier said than done of course. In order to trick his opponent, Lomachenko will feint with his lead hand to draw out counterpunches from his opponent. Once his opponent commits to a punch, Lomachenko will take the opportunity to step into advantageous positions and score punches.

Step feints and rear shoulder feints are also big weapons in Lomachenko’s arsenal to draw out counters from his opponents. Lomachenko also likes to change levels to trick his opponents. This means he will feint low then attack high, or feint high and attack low. His lead hand is his main weapon of attack. As mentioned, he is a right-handed southpaw so his dominant hand is in front. Like a fencer, Lomachenko will use his lead hand constantly to probe and feel out his opponent, constant feints, constantly occupying his opponent’s guard, then punish mistakes with lightning-quick combinations that usually end with a power lead right hook.