Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Nicholas Walters: Preview and Prediction for Upcoming Fight
One week after Sergey Kovalev and Andre Ward faced off in the desert for the biggest fight of 2016, Las Vegas will play host to a major bout in the super featherweight division, as WBO champion Vasyl Lomachenko defends against Nicholas Walters.
Lomachenko has been viewed as a potential pound-for-pound star since before he turned professional. Walters has emerged as one of the more exciting fighters in the sport in recent years.
There's a big upside for the winner of this one.
Tale of the Tape
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| Per Boxrec | Vasyl Lomachenko | Nicholas Walters |
| Record: | 6-1, 4 KOs | 26-0-1, 21 KOs |
| Height: | 5'6" | 5'7" |
| Reach: | 65.5" | 73" |
| Weight: | 130 lbs | 130 lbs |
| Age: | 28 | 30 |
| Stance: | Southpaw | Orthodox |
| Hometown: | Bilhorod-Dnistrovski, Ukraine | Montego Bay, Jamaica |
| Rounds: | 64 | 137 |
Nicholas Walters has a big advantage in reach, but Vasyl Lomachenko controls range brilliantly and has negated length advantages before.
Although Walters has 20 more professional bouts, quality of opposition is close to even between the two. Both of these guys know how to finish a fight.
Main Storylines
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Vasyl Lomachenko is arguably the greatest amateur boxer of all time. He recorded an astonishing record of 396-1 before turning professional, winning two gold medals for his native Ukraine.
Unlike most blue-chip prospects, Lomachenko wasted no time as a pro, facing club fighters and trial horses. In his debut fight, he knocked out 25-3 Jose Ramirez. In his second bout, he challenged Orlando Salido, one of the sport's most experienced champions.
Salido gave Lomachenko a crash course in rough-house, "veteran" tactics. The champion did not even try to make weight, relinquishing his WBO featherweight title on the scales, in order to gain a significant weight advantage over Lomachenko in the ring.
Salido treated Lomachenko to a steady diet of head butts, shoulder bumps and low blows, defeating the Ukrainian by split decision. But what impressed me about that fight was the fact Lomachenko adjusted well to Salido's tactics, and was winning the fight by the later rounds.
Since that loss, Lomachenko has risen with a bullet. He defeated the talented Gary Russell Jr. by majority decision to capture the WBO featherweight belt in his third fight. Last June he became a two-division world champ by knocking out long-time champion Roman Martinez, to capture the WBO belt at 130 pounds.
He will have his hands full with Walters, an athletic and explosive fighter who was also a champion at featherweight. Walters has knockouts over Vic Darchinyan and Nonito Donaire. He has yet to fight in 2016, after getting completely robbed last December when he left Verona, New York with only a draw against Jason Sosa.
Heading into 2015, Walters was one of the hottest fighters in the sport. He has cooled down considerably since. But an impressive performance on Saturday night will put him right back in the conversation for some of the biggest fights below 140 pounds.
Strengths
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Vasyl Lomachenko is an extremely well-rounded fighter, with tremendous versatility. He is outstanding at using straight punches on the outside, but his head and shoulder movement makes him an incredibly dangerous counter puncher in the pocket.
Lomachenko's footwork is the key to all of this. He controls distance as well as almost anybody in the sport, which allows him to engage on his own terms.
Nicholas Walters is an athletic, explosive fighter and a born puncher. His straight right hand upstairs is one of the most dangerous punches in the sport below 135 pounds.
But he's hardly a mere headhunter. He is good body puncher and can patiently break an opponent down.
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Weaknesses
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Vasyl Lomachenko has shown virtually nothing in the way of weakness in the boxing ring. He had a very tough night against Orlando Salido in his second fight, but adjusted well and won the late rounds.
Walters will be the most explosive puncher he has faced since Gary Russell Jr., so perhaps Walters can expose something we have yet to see.
Nicholas Walters is an offensive-minded fighter, which often leaves him open to getting hit. I thought he was robbed in his draw last year against Jason Sosa, but he did allow Sosa to land some flush punches.
Walters has also seemed less dangerous since moving to 130 pounds. His most high-profile knockouts were against Nonito Donaire and Vic Darchinyan, great, but aging, fighters who were both very small at featherweight.
Vasyl Lomachenko Will Win If...
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Nicholas Walters has better length and is probably stronger than anybody Vasyl Lomachenko has so far faced, so the Ukrainian champion is going to want to fight Walters at middle range, just inside of the challenger's reach but far enough back to avoid the clinch and accidental head butts.
Fortunately for Lomachenko, he is a master at controlling the range. He has all of the tools to win this bout.
Look for Lomachenko to double up on his jab while sliding to his right, into position to catch Walters down the middle with a straight left. Then he will dart back out of range, shift his angle and attack once more, before Walters has the chance to get set.
Lomachenko wants to spend this entire fight either just beyond or just inside of Walter's reach. He wants to frustrate the challenger and get him to lunge. Once that happens, Walters will really open himself to Lomachenko's offense.
Nicholas Walters Will Win If...
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Nicholas Walters needs to establish a solid, stinging jab and use it to keep Lomachenko at the end of his punches. He needs to remain patient and keep Lomachenko in front of him, rather than overcommitting to an attack and giving the champion an opportunity to slide forward and to the side, for a counter attack.
To have a chance to win this fight, Walters is going to need to get into position to let loose his right hand. The straight right is often Kryptonite for a southpaw like Lomachenko.
To do this, Walters is going to need to circle left and get his own lead left foot outside of Lomachenko's lead right. If Walters can spend significant parts of the fight in that position, he will have a chance to land a big punch.
Walters is also going to need to put in good work to Lomachenko's body. The best way to counter Lomachenko's exquisite footwork is to beat him up and slow him down.
Prediction
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This should be an exciting fight and competitive in places. But great fighters beat very good fighters. And I think Vasyl Lomachenko is great, while Walters is merely very good.
Lomachenko has defeated a quicker, more athletic fighter than Walters in Gary Russell Jr. He knocked out a more experienced fighter than Walters in Roman Martinez.
On paper, Walters' power looks like it could be an equalizer in all of this. But he has yet to knock out anybody since moving up to 130 pounds.
Lomachenko can punch from a lot of different angles with great accuracy. He does not need to see a lot of openings to be effective. Walters is not exactly stingy about giving his opponents openings.
This is a matchup between two of the division's best, but Lomachenko is one of boxing's pound-for-pound best. He will win this bout by late-round TKO.
From here, Lomachenko should be in position for some of the most high-profile bouts of the next few years. I would love to see him face Mikey Garcia at 135 pounds. I'm also intrigued by the possibility of Lomachenko against Manny Pacquiao if a satisfactory catchweight can be agreed upon.
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