by Cliff Rold

It was apparent from signing that Vasyl Lomachenko should be able to beat Roman Martinez. There was never much doubt about that. Martinez had lost to less talented men than the multi-time Olympic champion and was coming off two brutal wars with Orlando Salido. He didn’t have the defense or offensive variety to really threaten here.

He was, simply, tailor made for Lomachenko. That’s not Monday morning quarterback talk either. Lomachenko was expected to win here going in, perhaps in dominant fashion.

So why did Lomachenko’s win impress so much?

Style points matter. In becoming the quickest professional to win belts in two classes, Lomachenko for the first time fully looked like the monster his talents have hinted at. He didn’t coast to an easy decision. He didn’t box when he could punch. He came to make a statement and beat Martinez with a finality no one had before.   

Let’s go the report card.

Grades

Pre-Fight: Speed – Martinez B; Lomachenko A-/Post: B; A

Pre-Fight: Power – Martinez B; Lomachenko B/Post: B; A+

Pre-Fight: Defense – Martinez C-; Lomachenko A-/Post: C-; A-

Pre-Fight: Intangibles – Martinez B+; Lomachenko A/Post: C+; A+

Going into the fight, Lomachenko was a little underrated in the speed category. He showed that on Saturday, hitting Martinez from all angles and with uncommon fluidity. He’s not quite in that all time speed category of a Meldrick Taylor, Manny Pacquiao, or Roy Jones but he’s only a bit below. His technical prowess makes it a non-issue. He’s fast enough for anyone.

His power wasn’t so much underrated as not fully proven yet. We’d seen him land some big shots. We’d also seen Lomachenko fail to consistently sit down on his shots. That’s not a criticism. No matter how good he looks, he’s still adjusting to the pro game. This is how good he is getting used to being in the paid ranks at less than ten fights. The shot he iced Martinez with was a gem and showed what he might fully be capable of. Martinez had been stopped only once and it took accumulated punishment from Mikey Garcia to do it. No one did him with a one-hitter quitter.

That was a statement finish.

In some respects, it bears to mind another reference to Jones. Jones was a killer at middleweight and super middleweight and one of his attributes was an ability to stop durable fighters cold. Thomas Tate took bombs from Julian Jackson for the full distance. Jones walked through him in two. Glen Wolfe had gone the distance with Gianfranco Rosi and James Toney; Jones stopped him with a body shot in one. Tony Thornton went the distance with Steve Collins, Chris Eubank, and James Toney. Jones eviscerated him in four.

None of those guys had won three major titles in their division. Granted, that was a particularly deep era at 160 and 168 lbs. but the point is made. Special fighters produce uncommon results. That was an uncommon end for Martinez.

Not that it was all smooth sailing. Martinez did have a moment in the fight where a single hard shot had Lomachenko keeping his distance for a moment. That’s a good thing. He handled that brief moment of adversity well and it didn’t shake his game at all. His maturity shined through.

There is an audacity to Lomachenko that is hard to ignore. In the 1920s, flyweight Fidel LaBarba followed up on an Olympic gold medal by facing Jimmy McLarnin (thrice), Newsboy Brown, and Frankie Genaro in his first eleven fights. He didn’t escape that run unscathed. Neither has Lomachenko, who lost competitively but fairly to Orlando Salido. Salido, Gary Russell Jr., and Martinez might not be McLarnin/Brown/Genaro, but relative to this era it’s as close as we’re likely to see.

Lomachenko is in a special category of early career starts in his day with only Japan’s Naoya Inoue, also a titlist in two classes. Inoue has Roman Gonzalez lurking in his future. Lomachenko may not have an opponent of that caliber for another weight class or two. In the meantime, would anyone doubt that if he wanted to he could unify 130 before he had a dozen fights? That he wouldn’t be favored over all the titlists right now at 135?

Enjoy this. We don’t see a fighter go for it this early that often. On Saturday, we got a glimpse that the best may be yet to come.       

Report Card and Staff Picks 2016: 23-9 (Including picks for Molina-Provodnikov and Andrade-Nelson)

Cliff’s Notes…

Not the first to say it, but Saturday didn’t just shine a spotlight on Lomachenko; Demetrius Andrade made a big statement too. His win wasn’t so much the thing as was his dissection of Willie Nelson. Andrade looked like the talent whose potential was there at the 2008 Games. Mix and match him with the Charlo’s, Julian Williams, and Erickson Lubin over the next few years and there may not be a better wellspring of young talent than at 154 lbs…John Molina fought the fight of his life Saturday and deserves all the credit in the world. However, if what we saw was also sort of a swan song for Ruslan Provodnikov’s mixing near the top of the sport, a tip of the cap is in order. Provodnikov has yet to beat in what one might call a bad fight and gave everyone, including Molina, a hard night. No one ever watched the brick chinned former 140 lb. titlist and thought they didn’t get their money’s worth. The sport can never have enough Provodnikov’s.

Cliff Rold is the Managing Editor of BoxingScene, a founding member of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board, and a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America.  He can be reached at roldboxing@hotmail.com