After a mooted clash with Cuba’s 122 lb champion Guillermo Rigondeaux fell through after financial terms could not be agreed, WBO 126 lb titlist Vasyl Lomachenko will make the third defence of his belt against little known Mexican, Romulo Koasica, on the under card of Nov 7’s Tim Bradley/Brandon Rios clash.
It’s a blow to fans who had hoped to see the two stand-outs square off in what would sure to be a true, intriguing, 50/50 chess match type of a fight, such is the technical prowess of each man. Both won Olympic gold twice in glittering amateur careers and the soon to be 35 year old Rigondeaux is still yet to even box this year and isn’t getting any younger. Time is not on the side of this fight dragging in being made.
Speaking to ESPN.com, Top Rank’s Carl Moretti – who look after Lomachenko – shed a little light on the situation, saying he still has hopes for making the fight down the line if the Cuban’s team climb down on their demands.
“Rigondeaux’s team has no realistic understanding of the marketplace, which is a shame because the fighter gets hurt the most,” he said. “We’d love to make that fight, but not for what they were asking for. It’s a song we’ve heard before.
“Lomachenko wants to be challenged every time out. Rigondeaux provides a challenge for him in his mind and probably in the ring and, hopefully, we can look at it again for the first fight next year if they come back to earth.”
As it stands, Lomachenko will face the 25-4, 15ko, Koasica, whom British fans may remember from his fight last year with current IBF 126 lb champion, Lee Selby, to whom he dropped a wide decision. How much of a challenge he will present the 2x Olympic gold medalist is debatable, although Moretti claims that after taking out the Al Haymon guys, [whom HBO will not work with] such as Leo Santa Cruz and his new signing, Selby, the rest of the fighters in the frame as opponents see the name Lomachenko – and they don’t want to know.
“It’s frustrating because you’d like to get the best available opponent for Lomachenko, and when you go down a slim list, you have guys turning the fight down before you even get to the offer and to the money,” Moretti said, continuing on to admit the fight with Koasica is in essence an unaviodable mis-match – or to put it slightly differently, the best of a bad bunch.
Speaking about his opponent for November, Lomachenko himself was keen to just get down to business and ignore the speculation surrounding Rigondeaux now the fight evidently isn’t happening.
“I don’t know much — nothing, really — about my opponent,” he said. “My promoter, Top Rank, made the match and I am good with it. I will be ready and am anxious to get back into the ring.”
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