Vasiliy Lomachenko retires – Was he a great fighter?

Answering the question above.

Yes.

A few weeks ago, Vasiliy Lomachenko announced his retirement.

In 2014, Lomachenko was in tough.

The two-time Olympic gold medalist, with a reported amateur record of 396-1, had turned professional less than a year before, stopping Jose Luis Ramirez to pick up the WBO International Featherweight title.

His second fight didn’t go as planned. Orlando Salida roughed up Lomachenko and escaped with a majority decision. Lomachenko was shocked and disappointed. Promoter Bob Arum complained about the judging.

No matter, Lomachenko needed a reset. Many boxing authorities at the time figured he’d fight someone ranked much lower than him.

A showcase fight.

Nope.

Lomachenko’s team chose an undefeated speedster by the name of Gary Russell Jr. Quick and a pure counter-puncher, Russell’s perfect record showed 14 knockouts. Opponents had barely touched him in 24 professional fights.

The choice of Russell was an interesting one. It showed moxie and a lack of fear.

I was lucky enough to be ringside for the fight. The term Sweet Science needs to be applied here. Lomachenko moved with grace and purpose, while Russell matched him with speed. The fight was close until Lomachenko started to work the body. Russell’s counters connected, but Lomachenko’s use of angles and determination down the stretch won him the fight. A world title was his.

His domination of Nicholas Walters cemented his greatness to me. Walters was one scary dude. He had knocked out Vic Darchinyan and Nonito Donaire in back-to-back fights. His power was undeniable.

Lomachenko hardly concerned him until they stepped into the ring. Walters couldn’t lay a glove on the Ukrainian. Lomachenko ducked and weaved and made Walters look foolish. He tattooed Walters with punches, finally forcing Walters to quit after seven one-sided rounds.

Lomachenko’s performance was a master class. He’d hit this level again with victories over Jason Sosa, Guillermo Rigondeaux, Jose Pedraza, Luke Campbell, and Jorge Linares.

In his short career, he won three world titles.

His last fight was against George Kambosos Jr. last year. Lomachenko won the fight by stoppage.

Several days ago, Lomachenko released the following statement.

“I’m grateful for every victory and defeat inside the ring and outside the ring,” he said on social media. “I’m thankful that, as my career comes to an end, I’ve gained clarity about the direction a person must take in order to achieve true victory, not just in the ring.

“I thank God for my honest and wonderful, and kind parents for their care, love, and warmth I’ve felt throughout my life. My father [Anatoly] taught me not only boxing but how to be a role model for my children.

“I’ve made many mistakes in life and in the gym, but he was always by my side, correcting me when needed. I have many warm memories.

“To my family, you have always stood by me. You shared in my victories and you felt the pain of my losses. Those losses only made us stronger.”

Lomachenko was poetry in motion in the ring.

He was special.

I’ll miss him.