Editorials

Who’s Next for Vasyl Lomachenko?

If you watched WBO Featherweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko (4-1-0, 2 KOs) for the first time in the opening televised bout on the Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao undercard, you’re probably seriously impressed.

BOX-MAC-CHN-BOX-FEATHER-RUS-BEL Photo by Getty Images

2. The Winner of Evgeny Gradovich vs. Lee Selby

On May 30, 2015, current IBF title holder Evgeny Gradovich (19-0-1, 9 KOs) will make a defense against No. 1 contender Lee Selby (20-1-0, 8 KOs) as part of the undercard for Kell Brook vs. Frankie Gavin from the O2 Arena in London, England.

Gradovich will be in hostile territory, since Selby is a UK native who many across the pond have dubbed “The Welsh Floyd Mayweather.”

A win for Gradovich, who is nicknamed “The Mexican Russian,” for his straight-forward brawling style, would set him up as a more realistic option for Vasyl Lomachenko since they both fight under the Top Rank banner.

Boxing fans love a unification bout, and this one would make for a very sexy styles matchup pitting the aggressive volume puncher Gradovich against the highly skilled technical fighter in Lomachenko.

This fight would certainly be an HBO Championship Boxing headlining fight, and would be a step back up in competition for Lomachenko, similar to the level of his fight with Gary Russell Jr.

It’s easy to assume that of all the makeable fights for Lomachenko right now, Gradovich would be the second most desired among boxing fans.

Selby would also make for an interesting matchup with Lomachenko, since both fighters are very technically sound.

The only problem is if Selby wins, he’ll likely take an optional first defense in his home country the way UK fighters often do.

It’s not likely Selby would choose to fight someone as highly skilled as Lomachenko right away, but instead would choose to make a defense against someone like Jayson Velez, Eric Hunter, or even fellow UK fighter Josh Warrington.

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