Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Gamalier Rodriguez: Winner, Recap and Reaction

Vasyl Lomachenko (4-1, 2 KOs) retained his WBO world featherweight title on Saturday night on the Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao pay-per-view undercard, cruising to a ninth-round KO victory over Puerto Rican challenger Gamalier Rodriguez (25-3-3, 17 KOs) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

Lomachenko's speed, guile and precision were too much for the clearly overmatched Rodriguez, who sank to a knee for a count twice in the fight, once in the seventh and once again in the ninth, the latter ending the bout. 

HBO Boxing had the final Compubox numbers from the bout:

For long stretches of the bout, Lomachenko peppered Rodriguez with both hands and fractured his defenses with ease. At times, Rodriguez's only recourse seemed to be low blows and clinching one of Lomachenko's arms in a manner that looked more like square dancing than actual boxing. 

John Locher/Associated Press

Rodriguez was the aggressor at the beginning, but he clearly lacked the quickness to get through Lomachenko's excellent defenses with his power punches. 

Lomachenko, looking confident, was content to study Rodriguez for the first two rounds and assess his game plan.

There was hardly any reaction from the crowd at MGM Grand Garden Arena early on, empty seats a sign that despite the high-profile nature of this undercard bout and Lomachenko's undeniable talent, there was only one fight of widespread interest on Saturday.

By the fourth round, Lomachenko had his opponent completely figured out. Rodriguez's limited power was no deterrent, and the Ukrainian prizefighter burrowed his way inside and landed several crushing combinations.

Commentator Jim Lampley had this to say of Lomachenko, per HBO Boxing:

Lomachenko's side-to-side movement proved to be too much for Rodriguez to follow, and the latter resorted to clinching to slow things down, per Top Rank Boxing:

Rodriguez, nursing a cut over his right eye, lost a point in the fifth for a low blow. Despite a four-inch reach advantage (69" to 65"), Rodriguez's inferior hand speed prevented him from keeping Lomachenko at bay.

After six rounds of dominant fighting, UCNLive.com's Steve Kim was ready to plan out Lomachenko's future boxing schedule:

The seventh saw Rodriguez sink to the mat after a hard body punch from Lomachenko. Boxer Paul Malignaggi admired Lomachenko's versatility and unique attack:

Top Rank Boxing showed one of Lomachenko's better punches, one that could have started any number of flurries from the clearly superior boxer:

After losing another point for a low blow in the eighth, Lomachenko unleashed another rapid-fire combination that again sent Rodriguez to the mat on one knee. Dazed, tired and clearly beaten, Rodriguez stayed grounded for the 10-count.

The comprehensive, dominant performance from Lomachenko will once again have fight fans wishing he had turned pro several years earlier. In only his fifth fight, it's clear that he is the class of his division and should have the power and speed to move up a class if he wants.

Lomachenko's pleasing fighting style and mastery of the ring should have him headlining in places like Las Vegas or New York in due time.