Ukrainian icon Vasiliy Lomachenko, who was promoted by Bob Arum’s Top Rank, has announced his retirement from boxing after an exceptional career.
The 37-year-old had is often regarded as being one of the greatest amateur boxers of all time, capturing an Olympic Gold Medal at the 2008 Games in Beijing and the 2012 Games in London respectively.
He entered the professional ranks in 2013 and would become a world champion in just his third fight, defeating Gary Russell Jr to claim the WBO world featherweight title.
The Ukrainian superstar ended up winning world titles at super-featherweight as well as lightweight in the years that followed, beating the likes of Guillermo Rigondeaux, Jorge Linares and George Kambosos Jr along the way.
His victory over Kambosos, which took place just over one year ago, would go onto be the 37-year-old’s final victory of his professional career, ending with a record of 18-3.
In an interview with Fight Hype, Lomachenko’s former promoter Bob Arum named former WBO lightweight champion Keyshawn Davis as the Ukrainian star’s ‘successor’.
“One of my great fighters Vasiliy Lomachenko retired today, so the next successor for him is Keyshawn [Davis], so I’m gonna look forward to the next couple of years.”
Davis captured world honours for the first time in February when he defeated Denys Berinchyk to win the WBO lightweight crown with an impressive stoppage victory in New York.
Arum’s grand plans, however, were dampened this weekend. The 26-year-old from Norfolk, Virginia had been scheduled to make the first defence of his title against Edwin De Los Santos on June 7, but was stripped of his belt after he missed weight by almost five pounds and saw the fight cancelled. He has subsequently said he will move up to super-lightweight after the blunder, of which Arum called ‘very disappointing.’
