Fighters come in all shapes and sizes but for the most part, the dreams they share are very similar. Vasiliy Lomachenko, however, had a bit of a different goal for himself.
Getting their hands on a world title is the number one goal of most fighters starting off. Of course, as their career progresses, more goals pop up on their agenda. But, grabbing one of those major straps is salient to them moving forward.
In the sport of boxing today, becoming a world titlist is somewhat of a rarity but thanks to the proliferation of titles, it isn’t completely out of reach for some.
In most cases, years upon years of work is needed to earn a shot, Lomachenko, on the other hand, was given that opportunity in just his second fight. Ultimately, the former two-time Olympic gold medalist has aggregated belts in three separate weight classes. Still, he doesn’t quite feel complete.
Lomachenko is selfish, in a good way. He doesn’t like the thought of multiple fighters prancing around his division masquerading as champions. In his mind, having just a piece of the four titles is as good as having none of them. Snagging them all? That’s the main goal.
Unfortunately for Lomachenko, he was given his opportunity a handful of times. But, against Teofimo Lopez and Devin Haney, he came out on the losing end. Now, at the age of 35, Lomachenko knows that those opportunities will be hard to come by. He will, however, have the chance to become a belt holder again when he takes on George Kambosos Jr. on May 12th for the vacant IBF title.
Discernment, from Lomachenko’s point of view, is needed. He knows that he can’t take his eyes off the prize and focus elsewhere. With his focus remaining on Kambosos, he believes that he should be able to outclass his man. If he does, he’s still convinced that when it comes to becoming an undisputed champion, he’s idoneus to the task.
“Right now, my goal is to be world champion again,” said Lomachenko during a recent presser. “After, I can start thinking about undisputed again.”