By: Sean Crose
He arrived in the professional ranks with the kind of fanfare I had never seen. I had witnessed the 1984 US Olympic team’s huge impact on the sport but even that celebrated crew didn’t hit the pro ranks with the hype Vasyl Lomachenko did. We were informed the young Ukranian was more than just a promising arrival, but a man who absolutely, positively, needed to be seen in action…and he had yet to have a single professional fight. Hype is a powerful thing. So confident was Loma (as he was called) that he wanted his very first fight in the pro ranks to be for a title.
It all made sense at the time I suppose. Loma was said to have been the greatest amateur ever. Not only that, he trained in a manner that looked like it required a team of NASA scientists for him to get a workout (What were those blocks on the gym wall anyway?). Reality comes at us hard and fast though and Loma ended up losing his second fight to Orlando Salido. To his credit however Loma came back and came back strong, winning an array of world titles in numerous weight divisions and besting the likes of Guillermo Rigondaux, Nicholas Walters, among other notables.
He may not have been the best ever but he was certainly on everyone’s pound for pound list in a brief period of time. And why wouldn’t he be? The man was dazzling to watch fight, all angles and cockiness. It wasn’t until he faced another brash young fighter in Teofimo Lopez that Loma was to lose again. The man still went on to win three in a row before dropping an insanely close fight to Devin Haney in 2023. Almost a full year later Loma defeated Georges Kambosos. And then, nothing.
Until now.
Loma, friends, is coming back.”God works in mysterious ways,” he says. “I thought I would never step back into the ring again as a boxer. But our Lord Jesus Christ had other plans for me. I’m happy to be living this boxing life once again. I’m grateful to everyone who is once again part of this journey.”
Suffice to say, Loma is teaming with Bob Arum’s, Top Rank Promotions once again. If things go as planned he’ll be back in the ring early next year. Once more, he’ll be fighting at lightweight. The truth is, this comeback is something fans will be eager to see…or at least something fans SHOULD be eager to see.
Why? Because the man is brilliant in the ring. He’s dizzying, Loma, with a dancer’s footwork and handspeed that is a marvel to behold. Here’s the guy who made four opponents in a row quit within the distance. And while that may have been a while ago, one can only assume the man has some fireworks left in him. He hasn’t taken a ton of damage as far as the naked eye can see. On top of that he doesn’t come across as being the hard living type. In other words, even though he’s no longer in his prime, Loma remains a must see attraction.
Will he succeeded at this comeback though? Or will he be like other returning fighters, those who come up short? Time, is always, we’ll tell the tale. Boxing is nothing if not a tough business, but logo is nothing if not a tough guy. If anyone could rise to the occasion it’s the brainy Loma, a fighter who’s cerebral approach has won him fame, accolades and more than a little admiration. It’s certainly going to be interesting, friends.
