Vasyl Lomachenko embarrasses Guillermo Rigondeaux, makes him quit

Vasyl Lomachenko fought Guillermo Rigondeaux for pound-for-pound bragging rights. It turns out that Lomachenko has plenty to brag about after embarrassing Rigondeaux.

Madison Square Garden hosted what was supposed to be the most competitive bout of 2017 between pound-for-pound greats Vasyl Lomachenko and Guillermo Rigondeaux. Both boxers boasted gold-medal amateur careers and respect at boxing’s highest level, but Lomachenko erased Rigondeaux’s legacy on Saturday night.

Surprisingly, Rigondeaux took the center of the ring at the opening bell. Not many punches were thrown, but Rigondeaux didn’t run. He stood his ground and kept Lomachenko away for a majority of the round. The experience of both fighters made it hard for anyone to break through with a meaningful punch.

The second round started in a similar fashion, but Lomachenko was able to hit Rigondeaux several times when he lowered his head to the left, which he did often. Things got dramatic when Lomachenko connected on a clean punch when Rigodeaux thought they were being broken apart by the referee. The tide turned, and this was clearly Lomachenko’s round. Rigondeaux started to hold Lomachenko excessively, too.

The pace quickened in round three. Lomachenko looked very comfortable and was letting his hands go with ease. He figured out Rigondeaux’s style. Rigondeaux tried to duck numerous times to get out of Lomachenko’s range, but it didn’t work. He looked dejected, and he was starting to get beat up by the bigger Lomachenko.

Things would only get worse for Rigondeaux — much worse.

Lomachenko’s speed and movement completely confused Rigondeaux for the remainder of the fight. He was throwing five and six-punch combinations and Rigondeaux could do nothing to stop it. Rigondeaux found out quickly that he was in the ring with a superior athlete and boxer.

In round five, Rigondeaux had no answer for Lomachenko’s offense and all he could do was hold onto Lomachenko for dear life. As the bell rang to end this round, Rigondeaux shoulder-checked Lomachenko out of frustration. Lomachenko answered back with a punch. Rigodendeaux’s frustration boiled over.

Lomachenko hurt Rigondeaux in round six with a clean straight left. The announcers mentioned it in passing, but he was hurt much worse than anyone knew. His legs buckled slightly following this punch and his legs did not look good on his way back to his corner at the end of the round.

Shockingly, the fight was stopped before the start of the seventh round. Rigondeaux’s trainer, Pedro Luis Diaz, told fight doctor that he was stopping the fight because Rigondeaux injured his left hand.

Rigondeaux may have hurt his hand, but that’s not the reason the fight was stopped. He was taking mounting punishment. If this fight continued, there was a good chance that Lomachenko would have stopped Rigondeaux; he was beaten mentally and physically.

Lomachenko made Rigondeaux look like an average fighter on Saturday night, which he isn’t. Lomachenko is just that good. He is a boxing superstar in terms of talent. Rigondeaux was a decorated champion, but Lomachenko is so good that he transformed him into a quitter. There might not be another boxer in the world who could have accomplished this achievement.

That’s saying something monumental about the type of rare talent that Vasyl Lomachenko is in the sport of boxing, and we can only imagine how far he can go in his career.