Lomachenko vs. Crolla Recap – Loma Crushes Overmatched Challenger

Boxing
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Posted: Apr 13, 2019 | Updated: 3 years ago

WBA (super) and WBO lightweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko knocked out Anthony Crolla in four rounds on Friday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, CA.

Lomachenko vs. Crolla – Fight Recap

Crolla began the fight on his back foot, moving quite a bit around the ring to in an attempt to keep Lomachenko from getting his offense going. With little action, Lomachenko took the first round based largely on moving forward and controlling the center of the ring. Lomachenko would find his target much more often in Round 2, landing a few crowd-pleasing combinations while consistently stalking and applying pressure. Whenever Crolla would throw, Lomachenko would jump back and avoid most of his shots.

“Hi-Tech” would find even more success in the next round, culminating in what was almost a stoppage victory. Referee Jack Reiss counted a knockdown when Lomachenko backed up the challenger and unloaded a flurry of punches, making Crolla fall against the ropes. Lomachenko actually believed the fight had been called off and momentarily celebrated before being told that the bout was still on. Crolla would subsequently be saved by the bell. The Ukrainian champion came out very aggressively in Round 4, backing up Crolla from the start and eventually nailing him with a hard, short right hook that put Crolla down and out face-first.

This was just a dominant performance from start to finish by Vasyl Lomachenko. His aggressiveness and crisp combinations never allowed Crolla to settle down and get anything going offensively. A headbutt from Crolla (which I believe happened in the fourth round) was the most damage Lomachenko took in the ~10 minutes they fought.

From what I could see, it really did not seem like Anthony Crolla came to win. He did not throw much, and most of the punches he did throw were weak and ineffective. To be short, it was just about as easy of a title defense as you’re ever going to see in boxing.

Lomachenko said after the fight that he would like to face WBC lightweight champion Mikey Garcia. Garcia (39-1-0) last fought in March at welterweight, where he was dominated over twelve rounds by Errol Spence Jr.

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Due to the frustrating politics in boxing, we may never see Mikey Garcia and Vasyl Lomachenko in the ring together. Heck, Garcia may not even want to make the cut down to 135 anymore anyways. If that fight does not happen, IBF titlist Richard Commey is a potential next opponent for Lomachenko. Commey, who won the IBF belt in February, was scheduled to face Lomachenko but was replaced by Crolla after he suffered a broken hand.

Aside from Garcia, who do you think makes the most sense for Lomachenko next? Will Lomachenko ever get in the ring with Teofimo Lopez or Gervonta Davis? Comment below with your opinion.

 

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