Vasiliy Lomachenko could be on an exciting collision course with Shakur Stevenson if he overcomes George Kambosos Jr’s challenge on Saturday night, says Top Rank CEO Bob Arum.
Ukrainian great Lomachenko will face Kambosos for the IBF lightweight world title, with the two men expected to meet for undisputed honors before Lomachenko opts to return to his home country following the Russian invasion.
Lomachenko enters following his unanimous decision loss to Devin Haney last May, while Kambosos returned to winning ways by defeating Maxi Hughes in July after back-to-back losses to Haney.
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Devin Haney won a close unanimous decision over Vasiliy Lomachenko after a highly competitive fight in Las Vegas
“Kambosos is a real threat. He can fight, he’s very talented, Lomachenko is super talented,” Arum told Sky Sports.
“But again there is his age, especially in the lightweight divisions where age is more of a factor than in the heavyweight divisions.
“But I hope Lomachenko is able to rise to the occasion and win the title, because there’s no fighter I enjoy watching more than Lomachenko. He’s a very good technician.”
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Vasiliy Lomachenko had to work very hard beating Jamaine Ortiz on points to then set up a fight with undisputed champion Devin Haney.
Stevenson currently holds the WBC lightweight belt, Gervonta Davis reigns as WBA champion while the IBF, WBO and Ring titles remain vacant.
Stevenson has established himself as one of boxing’s most gifted superstars, achieving a professional record of 21-0 at the age of 26-0 and looming as one half of a potential mega-fight with Lomachenko.
Live fight night
Sunday May 12 at 3:00 a.m.
“I have this other fighter Shakur Stevenson, who is also a great technician,” Arum added.
“So if Lomachenko wins and Shakur, who is scheduled to fight in July, wins, then in the fall to make a Lomachenko-Shakur fight, every serious boxing fan will watch this in awe between two great technicians fighting for a title unified.
“Let’s see what happens. Kambosos is very, very good. Even though he’s not from Perth, he’s fighting on his turf, which means something.
“I’m looking forward to it, it’s going to be sold in Perth.”
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Highlights from Shakur Stevenson’s win over Edwin De Los Santos in Las Vegas
Lomachenko’s clash with Kambosos Jr is part of a banner month of May for boxing, with the month starting with undisputed champion Naoya Inoue’s fight against Luis Nery in Japan before heading to Saudi Arabia to crown an undisputed champion of the heavyweights consisting of Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk.
“My travel schedule is Japan, Perth, then I go to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for the Fury-Usyk fight, then I go to England for the fight in Leeds with Josh Taylor and Jack Catterall, then I go back to Saudi Arabia for a big fight between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol (in June) for the undisputed light heavyweight title, then return to New York for our great Puerto. Rican Day Parade Show,” Arum said.
Watch Lauren Price challenge Jessica McCaskill in her first ever world title fight from Cardiff on Saturday May 11, live on Sky Sports; Vasiliy Lomachenko will next face George Kambosos Jr in Perth, Australia on Sunday, May 12.
