By Ian S Palmer
In a rarity in pro boxing, Vasyl Lomachenko of Ukraine will be attempting to win a world title in just his second career pro bout. He’ll have his hands full though when he takes on tough veteran Orlando Salido of Sonora, Mexico. The 12-round bout for Salido’s WBO featherweight crown will take place on March 1 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas and broadcast across North America by HBO.
Lomachenko is a two-time Olympic gold medalist, winning gold in 2008 and 2012, and one of boxing’s brightest prospects. He obviously had an excellent and extensive amateur career and reportedly lost just one bout while winning 396. He turned pro back in October and beat Jose Ramirez, who was 25-3, by fourth-round knockout. It was the first time Ramirez has been stopped in his career.
The champion has a career mark of 40-12-2 along with 28 Kos to his name. Lomachenko is 1-0 with one stoppage. The 26-year-old Lomachenko may figure he’s going in against one of the weaker world champions since Salido is now 33-years old has lost a dozen fights and has been stopped in five of them. Salido has been fighting as a pro since he was just 15 and has a wealth of experience. All five of his Ko losses came in his first 23 bouts as did eight of his total defeats.
Since then he’s lost to some of the best in the world such as titleholders Mikey Garcia and Yuriorkis Gamboa and Salido gave them both a tough time. Lomachenko is hoping to take Salido’s title on his way to big-money fights against the likes of Abner Mares, Nonito Donaire and Jhonny Gonzalez. Salido isn’t about to give up his crown so easily though and will be putting the pressure on his challenger. Salido has good power in both hands and at this moment in his career has a relatively decent chin.
The champion will use his experience and try every trick in the book to gain an advantage. This will be new to the challenger since he’s used to the amateur ranks, where the tactics are quite different. Lomachenko, whom is a southpaw, will try to utilize his excellent skills which include, power, speed and agility. He’s also a great body puncher as Ramirez found out. The challenger is also a good defensive boxer and not easy to hit.
Lomachenko doesn’t really have anything to lose here. It’s just his second pro fight and if he loses against a world class champion it’s not really going to do any damage to his long-term career. The opposite is true for Salido though, especially since he’s now past his prime. It will take Lomachenko a few rounds to get used to the pro game and tactics that Salido is likely to employ. It’s a big difference going three or four rounds in the amateurs to 12 rounds against a world champion.
The challenger has youth and speed on his side and they can both bang. Lomachenko is the more accurate puncher and his body attack will be hard to deal with. However, the key to victory could be his chin. If he can take Salido’s shots, and he should be able to, then he should also take his title by unanimous decision or late stoppage.
