Getty Vasiliy Lomachenko fields questions during a press conference ahead of his world lightweight championship fight against Anthony Crolla.
Vasyl Lomachenko has one of the most impressive resumes of any fighter in recent history. A two-time Olympic gold medalist and multi-division champion, he’s 12-1 as a pro heading into tonight’s fight against underdog Anthony Crolla.
The fight headlines an intriguing Top Rank Event at the Staples Center that will air on ESPN+. (You can start a free trial here to watch the fight.)
Lomachenko was born on February 17, 1988 in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, Ukraine. After his illustrious amateur career, Lomachenko made his professional debut on October 12, 2013 against Jose Ramirez. Lomachenko typically fights in six-month intervals but has been known to be comfortable jumping into the ring earlier if the right opportunity arises.
Laser-focused on being the best fighter in the history of the sport, Lomachenko has a long way to go. But given his amateur record and professional start, he could be on his way to etching his name into the history books.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Who Is Vasyl Lomachenko’s Wife?
Vasyl Lomachenko’s wife is Elena Lomachenko. Lomachenko met Elena when they were both in high school and the two have remained together since. The couple ha two children together.
Their oldest child, Anatoly Lomachenko (named after his grandfather), was born on November 11, 2011. Their daughter Victoria Lomachenko was born on July 23, 2013.
Lomachenko likes to keep his private life private. Save for the occasional Instagram video or picture featuring an appearance by one of his children, Lomachenko is, for the most part, all business.
2. What Is Vasyl Lomachenko’s Record?
GettyVasyl Lomachenko exchanges punches with Miguel Marriaga.
Vasyl Lomachenko’s record is 12-1 as a pro. However, Lomachenko is most known for a legendary amateur career that saw him win two Olympic gold medals across a incredible 396-1 run. One of the most decorated amateur boxers in the sport’s history, Lomachenko was nearly granted a title shot in his first professional fight. Instead, he had to settle for dominating Jose Ramirez with a fourth-round TKO.
After losing his next fight to Orlando Salido for the WBO featherweight belt, Lomachenko rebounded nicely and picked up a gritty majority decision win over Gary Russell Jr. Since the Salido loss, Lomachenko has rattled off 11 consecutive wins, all either challenging for or defending a belt.
Lomachenko recently picked up the two biggest wins of his career in matches against Jose Pedraza and Jorge Linares. The Linares fight, in particular, was an extremely strong showing as Lomachenko was able to drop the champ with a series of vicious body shots. Arguably the most impressive part of Lomachenko’s showing was the fact that Linares dropped him in the sixth round and he came back looking even stronger.
Lomachenko vs. Crolla airs Friday, April 12, on ESPN+. You can watch it for free by starting a free 7-day trial here.
3. What Is Vasyl Lomachenko’s Height?
GettyVasyl Lomachenko and Anthony Crolla face off during their official weigh-in.
Vasyl Lomachenko’s height is 5’7″. Although he is nearly an inch and a half shorter than the average lightweight fighter, he uses a combination of excellent footwork and exceptional hand speed to control distance and inflict heavy damage. He has deadly accuracy and is adept at slipping punches through an opponent’s guard.
Lomachenko’s footwork, in particular, enables him to dictate the pace and distance of fights extremely well. Especially against orthodox fighters, like Crolla, Lomachenko makes a concentrated effort to establish his front foot in a position just outside his opponent’s lead foot. This helps give Lomachenko a split second longer to read and counter his opponent’s incoming right hand. That split second is all Lomachenko needs to frustrate fighters and if allowed to establish the position, he becomes nearly impossible to beat.
As a smaller lightweight, Lomachenko usually has a slight speed advantage over his opponents to being with. However, his punching power hasn’t seemed to drop off as he has stepped up in weight and if anything, Lomachenko looks even more dangerous fighting closer to his natural weight.
4. Who Could Be Vasyl Lomachenko’s Next Fight?
Getty Vasyl Lomachenko, Top Rank promoter Bob Arum, Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn and Anthony Crolla pose.
With a win, Lomachenko would likely have a date with either Richard Commey or Luke Campbell for his next fight. Commey recent won Mikey Garcia’s vacated IBF belt and would add yet another belt to Lomachenko’s growing collection. However, Lomachenko does have a mandatory contender lined up in the WBC with Campbell and will need to face him inevitably in order to keep his WBC belt.
However, should Lomachenko lose, the gates would open up in terms of who to go after next. Commey might still be in play as Lomachenko will almost certainly want to compete for another title, however, a more likely option would be an immediate rematch with Crolla. One of boxing’s most decorated champions, Lomachenko losing would be a massive upset on par with some of the biggest in boxing history.
Given Lomachenko’s background, it makes sense that he would get an immediate rematch, especially with an upset of this caliber. Especially if Crolla can pull off the upset, the second fight would be an even bigger affair and would make for an elite PPV draw.
5. Who is Vasyl Lomachenko’s Trainer?
Lomachenko’s trainer is his father, Anatoly Lomachenko. Anatoly was a former amateur boxer who started training Vasyl before he could even walk. While typically father-son fight teams don’t yield the best results, Vasyl and Anatoly have built one of boxing’s most impressive careers. Using unorthodox training methods, Anatoly helped shape Vasyl into the elite, versatile fighter he is today.
Even today, Anatoly has Lomachenko focus on seemingly insignificant tasks meant to challenge him both mentally and physically. ESPN’s Mark Kriegel detailed just how unorthodox Lomachenko’s training is.
“If the work is hard, it’s never predictable.” Kriegel wrote, “His father might have him kick a hacky sack 75 times before it hits the floor. It’s not just physical dexterity they’re after, but something cognitive.”
Perhaps the most unorthodox training method was convincing Vasyl to attend dance classes every day after school – before hitting the gym of course. Those dance classes wound up paying major dividends for Vasyl as he owns the best footwork in the sport. The years of traditional Ukranian folk dancing now enable him to quite literally dance circles around his opponents.
Lomachenko vs. Crolla airs Friday, April 12, on ESPN+. You can watch it for free by starting a free 7-day trial here.