Lucas Matthysse vs. Viktor Postol: Winner, Recap and Reaction

Lucas Matthysse is a knockout artist of the highest order, but it was the wiry, undefeated Viktor Postol who scored a knockout win in the 10th round Saturday night at the StubHub Center in Los Angeles, earning the vacant WBC world super lightweight title in the process. 

The stoppage came at the end of several rounds of excellent, measured boxing from Postol. He used his length and jab to keep Matthysse too far away to do any damage and holds to keep him from unloading at close range.

In the 10th, Matthysse bit on a Postol feint and fell forward into a stiff right hand from Postol. Thoroughly outboxed and outclassed after nine-plus demoralizing rounds, Matthysse took the 10-count on one knee, the picture of defeat.

HBO Boxing shared the knockout blow: 

UCNLive.com's Steve Kim and ESPN.com's Dan Rafael reacted to the result: 

Postol came into the match with just 11 knockouts in 27 bouts. Matthysse, by comparison, had 34 knockouts in 37 professional fights. With two stoppages in his last three fights—the other coming against Selcuk Aydin—Postol welcomed the idea of taking on Terence Crawford, per HBO Boxing:

In a frustrating bout, Saturday Night Boxing's Adam Abramowitz felt an incomplete arsenal hurt Matthysse:

It was a tentative start to the bout for Matthysse. Postol relied heavily on the jab, making it difficult for Matthysse to get in range. When he did find a way to get inside on the taller, longer Postol, he wasn't able to unleash his power punches. 

For a fighter known for combining a measured approach with crowd-pleasing action, it was an atypical performance from the Argentine. Postol did well to pop Matthysse with quick left-handed body shots before ducking back out of the smaller fighter's range.

Bad Left Hook's Scott Christ provided an assessment of the first three rounds: 

The strategy Postol and his trainer, the famous Freddie Roach, put together proved to be highly effective. It was a far cry from the plodding, straightforward approach Matthysse saw when he beat Ruslan Provodnikov in April.

Matthysse's urgency grew as the fight made its way to the middle rounds. He ate more of Postol's jabs and spent less time wading his way into range. Postol would hold to keep Matthysse too close to unleash a full power shot, although he did take some rabbit punches for those efforts. It made for some halting, sporadic action as the two styles clashed.

Write on the Button commented on the bout:

The tenor and rhythm of the bout changed in the sixth round. Matthysse fired off his best shots of the night. The finest of them was a straight right that caught the Iceman flush on the left cheek. HBO Boxing shared the highlight punch:

Boxing scribe Daniel Roberts took an opportunity to comment on Postol's technique: 

The seventh saw Matthysse finally find the range on his power shots. A big right hand wobbled Postol and drew a huge response from the crowd—though a clash of heads shook Matthysse—and a left hook later in the round did the same. It forced the Kiev, Ukraine, native to box at a higher register.

Despite a record and spindly frame that suggested power was not a hallmark of his game, Postol put together several solid combinations off the jab in the eighth to stagger Matthysse. A right hook to the back of the head sent the Argentine spinning. 

Kim assessed the eighth: 

Knowing a knockout was necessary, Matthysse upped the tempo in the late rounds. This left him open to vicious counters, and Postol finished the job in shocking fashion with his 10th-round KO.

The expectations should be sky-high for Postol after this bout. Matthysse had become a fan favorite in recent years with several exciting bouts against the likes of Provodnikov, Roberto Ortiz and Danny Garcia. Postol has done most of his professional work in his home country of Ukraine. Saturday was just his fourth bout on American soil. 

Crawford, the BWAA's 2014 Fighter of the Year, would make for a difficult opponent for Postol with his quickness and technique. Assuming Crawford takes care of Dierry Jean on October 24, this could be a huge fight for fans to look out for in 2016.