LOPEZ STAKES CLAIM TO STARDOM
Reporters’ star ratings for main events and undercards are based on in-ring entertainment, competitiveness and whether overall expectation was met
LAS VEGAS
OCTOBER 17
MAIN EVENT
UNDERCARD
SEVEN months after the coronavirus shut down sports in the United States, boxing fans finally got what they were waiting for on October 17 when Vasiliy Lomachenko and Teofimo Lopez met in the “bubble” at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. It was a high profile fight to unify the four major 135-pound titles. And it would be televised on ESPN - the most anticipated fight on “free” television in the United States since Keith Thurman fought Danny Garcia on CBS 43 months ago.
Lomachenko turned pro on October 10, 2013, after a stellar amateur career that saw him win two Olympic gold medals on behalf of Ukraine and compile an other-worldly amateur record of more than 300 wins against a single loss. Now 32 years old, he had been at or near the top of most pound-for-pound lists for much of his pro career while building a 14-1 (10) record and annexing belts at 126, 130, and 135 pounds. He entered the ring to face Lopez holding the WBC, WBA, and WBO lightweight titles.
Lomachenko carries himself like a champion and has always been willing to go in tough. But in recent years, due
