Vasiliy Lomachenko vs. Masayoshi Nakatani - June 26, 2021

[Ruthless-RKO]

Arum Eyeing Lomachenko Comeback Fight Against Masayoshi Nakatani In Summer

Vasiliy Lomachenko’s return to the ring appears to be against a fighter that his most recent conqueror Teofimo Lopez once defeated.

Top Rank boss Bob Arum revealed that he’s eyeing a comeback fight for the two-time Olympics gold medalist winner Lomachenko against Masayoshi Nakatani.

“We’ve talked with [Lomachenko], and we’re looking at early summer,” Arum told IFL. “He’s tired of fighting in the bubble. He’s a big ticket seller. We think we could do a big fight in the United States, maybe against the Japanese boy Masayoshi Nakatani. He gave Lopez all he could handle. Nakatani is a really hard puncher.”

Lomachenko (14-2, 10 KOs), a former three-division world champion, will look to position himself near the top of the pound-for-pound list again following his upset, unanimous decision loss to Lopez in October.

The awkward and rugged Nakatani should serve as a tough test.

Nakatani (19-1, 13 KOs) is coming off a fight of the year contender and come-from-behind, ninth-round technical knockout win over Felix Verdejo in December.

Nakatani was down on the cards 78-72, 78-72 and 77-74 and was knocked down twice before reversing his fate and finishing the Puerto Rican.

Nakatani’s win was a wonderful rebound following his 2019 unanimous decision loss to Lopez.

Both Lomachenko and Nakatani competed at lightweight in their last bout, and both will be coming into their potential meeting nursing serious injuries.

Lomachenko underwent right shoulder surgery following the Lopez fight, while Nakatani suffered a fractured right orbital bone in the fight versus Verdejo.

[Finkel]

They could try for Japan. Social distancing at events seems to consist of one empty seat between people.

Also they just restarted work on the Olympic sites next to my apartment building. So in the summer they will be ready to welcome foreign sports fans.

Think I read on here they already were with the recent Inoue exhibition.

[Evander]

Not good for Lomachenko.
Does nothing for him in term of hype.
No one knows his opponent.
What's the draw to this fight ?

[gilgamesh]

Nothing needs to be done for Lomachenko in terms of hype. He's already been hyped to the f*cking moon. He just needs to get back in the winners circle.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Not good for Lomachenko.
Does nothing for him in term of hype.
No one knows his opponent.
What's the draw to this fight ?

Of course he’s known to boxing fans.
He took Teo the distance, then did a huge comeback and KO’d Verdejo.

[Evander]

Not good for Lomachenko.
Does nothing for him in term of hype.
No one knows his opponent.
What's the draw to this fight ?

Of course he’s known to boxing fans.
He took Teo the distance, then did a huge comeback and KO’d Verdejo.

Perhaps my eyes were on a Teo v Loma rematch.
Good points you're right.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Not good for Lomachenko.
Does nothing for him in term of hype.
No one knows his opponent.
What's the draw to this fight ?

Of course he’s known to boxing fans.
He took Teo the distance, then did a huge comeback and KO’d Verdejo.

Perhaps my eyes were on a Teo v Loma rematch.
Good points you're right.

He’s tall too.. so can be awkward.

[Cent0089]

LOL f""k Lomachenko if he is going to fight Nakatani. Even Commey would be better. Another Crolla level fight

[Evander]

Of course he’s known to boxing fans.
He took Teo the distance, then did a huge comeback and KO’d Verdejo.

Perhaps my eyes were on a Teo v Loma rematch.
Good points you're right.

He’s tall too.. so can be awkward.

Makes for an ugly fight.

[H8Usernames]

Being a new Lomachenko fan I think that this fight is all wrong for Loma and all right for Arum. Top Rank wants to get rid of Loma who is fighting a weightclass above his best weight and this japaneese guy is huge.

Loma should go back down in weight and take things from there.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Vasiliy Lomachenko next fight: Masayoshi Nakatani targeted for summer date

While not exactly the fight most fans have been hoping for, a source close to ESPN reports that former unified lightweight champion Vasiliy Lomachenko (14-2, 10 KOs) is currently being lined up to make his ring return this summer against Masayoshi Nakatani (19-1, 13 KOs). A date hasn’t been set for the fight but it’s expected to serve as a main event for a summer ESPN card.

Many will remember that Nakatani gave Teofimo Lopez a tough outing in the summer of 2019, after which Lopez claimed he would never again face a tall fighter. Since that fight Nakatani would win a ninth round stoppage over Felix Verdejo this past December.

As for Lomachenko, he’s been out of action since losing his titles to Lopez in a unification bout last October. That had to have been a bit of a humbling experience for Lomachenko, and here he’ll be taking on a fighter with a significant height and reach advantage — one that could likely pose some real problems with his dimensions. Lomachenko also had shoulder surgery following the fight.

[Cent0089]

LOL

[brilo33]

seems a bit hash on loma , he has deserved the right to fight who ever he wants , you know what he brings and he needs a win or he is finished

[Onetimeonly]

Trying to feast on Lopez leftovers. Loma has to be high on the list of histories most overrated pro fighters.

[Thomastearns]

Loma might as well move back down and continue to hand out free boxing lessons for the next few years.

He can't defeat the laws of physics or the corrupt powers that have a stranglehold on the sport.

As for Lopez, his actions already tell you all you need to know.

Run rabbit run.

It's ok to run Teo, but just have the decency to admit it, and maybe show a little respect too.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Lomachenko is confirmed to next face Japan’s Masayoshi Nakatani. The bout will take place June 26, live on an ESPN platform from Virgin Hotels Las Vegas.

Was confirmed tonight on ESPN+ Broadcast.

[KiwiRider]

LOL f""k Lomachenko if he is going to fight Nakatani. Even Commey would be better. Another Crolla level fight

I take it you have seen this fight?

Pretty impressive stuff, and I believe a good enough comeback opponent

[margaret thatcher]

funny enough, masa gave teo about as tough a fight as loma did lol

[Ruthless-RKO]

[margaret thatcher]

masa, masa , masa!!

[KiwiRider]

Not good for Lomachenko.
Does nothing for him in term of hype.
No one knows his opponent.
What's the draw to this fight ?

Of course he’s known to boxing fans.
He took Teo the distance, then did a huge comeback and KO’d Verdej o.

Perhaps my eyes were on a Teo v Loma rematch.
Good points you're right.

It was a really good fight (Verdejo) too Evander. Carrying late KO power, Loma better be fit and keep it tight. I'm all for this match up.

[DrDuke]

Decent fight for a comeback after an injury. However, who knows, maybe it will provide some surprises and become a really good fight. Lomachenko isn't getting younger, while he suffers from injuries again and again. Hopefully he has enough left to make good fights against any current champions afterwards.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Janibek Alimkhanuly-Rob Brant Set For June 26 On Lomachenko-Nakatani Undercard

Janibek Alimkhanuly will take a step up in competition against a former world champion in his next fight.

BS.com has learned Alimkhanuly will box Rob Brant on June 26 in Las Vegas. Their 10-round middleweight match will be the co-feature before former three-division champion Vasiliy Lomachenko meets Masayoshi Nakatani in the 12-round main event.

ESPN+ will stream those two fights following a full undercard from The Theater at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas.

Alimkhanuly (9-0, 5 KOs), a southpaw from Kazakhstan, has won four of his past five fights by knockout since he beat Vaughn Alexander (then 12-1) by split decision in an eight-rounder in November 2018 at the University of Texas at El Paso’s Don Haskins Center. The 28-year-old Alimkhanuly knocked out Argentina’s Gonzalo Coria (16-4, 6 KOs) in the second round of his most recent fight, a scheduled 10-rounder October 9 at MGM Grand Conference Center in Las Vegas.

In Brant, Alimkhanuly will encounter a former WBA world middleweight champion who is trying to earn his way back to another title shot.

Brant beat Vitaliy Kopylenko by technical knockout in his last appearance. The 30-year-old Brant (26-2, 18 KOs) dominated Ukraine’s Kopylenko (28-3, 16 KOs) before their scheduled 10-round bout was stopped following the fifth round August 22 at MGM Grand Conference Center.

The Dallas resident’s impressive victory over Kopylenko marked Brant’s debut with trainer Brian McIntyre in his corner. McIntyre also trains unbeaten WBO welterweight champion Terence Crawford.

Brant’s win against Kopylenko also was his first fight following a disastrous second-round, technical-knockout loss to Ryota Murata in their middleweight championship rematch. Japan’s Murata (16-2, 13 KOs) regained his WBA world 160-pound crown from Brant in July 2019 in Osaka, about 8½ months after Brant upset the 2012 Olympic gold medalist by 12-round unanimous decision at Park Theater in Las Vegas.

Alimkhanuly and Brant are promoted by Bob Arum’s Top Rank Inc., which also represents Lomachenko.

Ukraine’s Lomachenko (14-2, 10 KOs) will fight for the first time against Japan’s Nakatani (19-1, 13 KOs) since he lost the WBA, WBC franchise and WBO lightweight titles to Teofimo Lopez on October 17 at MGM Grand Conference Center. Brooklyn’s Lopez (16-0, 12 KOs) is the only opponent who has beaten Nakatani, who lost a 12-round unanimous decision to Lopez in July 2019 at MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Maryland.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Middleweights Rob Brant and Zhanibek Alimkhanuly to square off on June 26

Middleweight contender Rob Brant will square off against Zhanibek Alimkhanuly, on June 26, Top Rank announced Thursday afternoon.

The 10-round bout will take place at The Theater inside the Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, in Las Vegas, Nevada, and will precede the main event between former Ring Magazine lightweight champion Vasiliy Lomachenko and Masayoshi Nakatani.

Both fights will stream live on ESPN+ (10 p.m. ET/ 7 p.m. PT).

“This is a fantastic doubleheader featuring a living legend in Lomachenko and a pair of middleweights who are closing in on a world title opportunity,” said Top Rank chairman Bob Arum. “Zhanibek is relatively young in the pro ranks but he has long wanted to fight the best available opposition. Rob Brant didn’t hesitate when offered this fight.”

Brant-Alimkhanuly is a clash between middleweights ranked in the top 10 by The Ring. Brant and Alimkhanuly are ranked Nos. 7 and 9, respectively.

The 30-year-old Brant (26-2, 18 knockouts), who is originally from Saint Paul, Minnesota, and now resides in Dallas, Texas, stopped Vitali Kopylenko after Round 5 of his mos recent bout, on August 22. The fight took place over a year after he was stopped by Ryoto Murata, in Osaka, Japan.

Brant has won four of his last five bouts.

Alimkhanuly (9-0, 5 KOs), who is originally from Kazakhstan and now lives and trains in Oxnard, California, most recently fought on October 9, scoring a vicious knockout of Gonzalo Gaston Coria with one second remaining in Round 2. The fight took place almost a year after knocking out Albert Onolunose of Canada in Round 6.

The 28-year-old has stopped four of his last five opponents. He is managed by Egis Klimas.

[stevekrazy]

Looking forward to this fight, I'm actually one of Loma's sparring partners for his final 4-weeks of sparring leading up to June 26.