By: Sean Cross
As war continues to ravage his homeland, the legendary Vasyl Lomachenko returned to the ring on Saturday. Lomachenko is roped in for his first fight in more than a year this weekend at the Madison Square Garden Theater after being flown to Ukraine to take part in an effort against Russian forces. His opponent? Undefeated Massachusetts native Jamain Ortiz. A win would put Lomachenko in line for a big fight against some of the biggest names in the lightweight division. A bankruptcy, simply put, is a grind. The fight was scheduled for 12 rounds.
16-2 Lomachenko tries to get inside in the first round and 16-0-1 Ortiz uses a sharp jab. Did Ortiz’s size advantage seem like a problem for the fighter known as Loma? Between rounds it was clear that he had sustained significant damage around his right eye. The second round was interesting. Lomachenko goes hard to the man, but Ortiz manages to land well. Ortiz’s flurry continued to serve well in the third, although Lomachenko was able to land well on several occasions.
The fourth ended up being a brutal, high-octane affair, one that Ortiz may have taken with a late blowout. The fifth was an impressive three-minute move. Lomachenko was landing the better punches, but Ortiz was the more active of the two fighters. Lomachenko looked sharper in the sixth, although Ortiz was definitely in the fight. In the seventh, Ortiz was showing an injury to his eye. Did Lomachenko have enough moves to win the round?
The eighth round was wild, more like a brawl than a contest between two highly skilled boxers. The ninth saw each man shrink a little. Still, Ortiz’s attack and Lomachenko’s accuracy were the issue. The tenth finally saw Lomachenko dominate. Did the man’s persistence pay off? The eleventh looked a lot like the previous rounds, with Loma attacking and Ortiz trying to get in. The 12th and final round saw Lomachenko continue to land sharp shots and Ortiz trying to land effectively on the man.
The judges gave a unanimous decision in favor of Lomachenko.
