Although his return was highly anticipated, countless notable names around the boxing world were wholeheartedly unimpressed with Vasiliy Lomachenko’s recent outing.
After a near one-year hiatus on the sidelines due to the ongoing Russian invasion in his native land of Ukraine, the 34-year-old attempted to return to the lightweight division’s elite by registering a victory over highly ranked contender, Jamaine Ortiz. But while the former two-time Olympic gold medalist managed to pull out the win, it didn’t come without its challenges.
Despite being pegged as a considerable underdog, the Puerto Rican product fought with a chip on his shoulder. As a result, Ortiz made their showdown far more contentious than originaly anticipated. Like many, Ryan Garcia became incredibly intrigued by Lomachenko’s return to the pugilistic spotlight once his bout was initially announced.
On October 29th, the loquacious contender at 140-pounds flicked on his television set and sat glued to his seat while nonstop action flashed before his eyes. As the 24-year-old witnessed the Ukrainian star struggle round after round, he openly wondered if going forward, the aging former champion will be in over his head against the upper echelon of the division.
“Loma just might be too small for 135 so it seems,” said Garcia on his social media account.
Though Lomachenko (17-2, 11 KOs) has ultimately set himself up for a tantalizing showdown against current undisputed kingpin, Devin Haney, Garcia (23-0, 19 KOs) is attempting to iron out the final few wrinkles of his own mouthwatering contest.
Following years of back-and-forth trash talk between himself and Gervonta Davis, the two sides are edging closer toward an eventual agreement. Nevertheless, according to Oscar De La Hoya, Garcia’s longtime promoter, he’s urged both Showtime and Dazn to put an end to their trivial differences and allow both stars to officially square off.