Imperious Loma, Price the Queen and Bentley back on the beat

By Eric Armit

Highlights from the past week of action

Vasyl Lomachenko stopped George Kambosos to win the vacant IBF lightweight title and took the IBO title from champion Kambosos.

Pedro Guevara won the WBC interim super-flyweight title with a split decision over Andrew Moloney.

Mixed night in Pasay City for Filipinos as former IBF and WBA super bantamweight champion Marlon Tapales knocked out Thai Nattapong Jankaew in the first round. But unheralded Mexican Kenbun Torres stopped WBO No.1 bantamweight Reymart Gaballo also in the first round.

In a good weekend for female boxing, Erika Cruz retained the WBA super-bantamweight title in a draw with Nazarena Romero. Olympic gold medallist Lauren Price beat champion Jessica McCaskill on a technical decision to win the IBO and WBA welterweight belts.

Cherneka Johnson outpointed Nina Hughes to win the WBA bantamweight belt and Kirsty Hill held on to her Commonwealth super-featherweight crown with a split decision over Fatuma Zarika.

Sergey Lipinets returned to action with a win over Robbie Davies.

In a bad night for Japanese boxers in South Korea, Australian Tej Pratap Singh outpointed Kazuto Takesako to win the OPBF middleweight title and Filipino Vince Paras decisioned former WBA light-flyweight champion Hiroto Kyoguchi.

Denzel Bentley stopped Danny Dignum in a clash of former WBO middleweight title challengers on a card that saw wins for Nathaniel Collins and Ryan Garner.

Heavyweights Mourad Aliev and Jose Larduet scored inside-the-distance wins in Cologne.

Who won the week?

Most significant: Vasyl Lomachenko is a champion again and there are some good fights to be made at lightweight.

Most entertaining: Sergey Lipinets vs. Robbie Davies saw plenty of action, and spice was added by three knockdowns. Honorary mention to Ryan Garner vs. Liam Dillon, a typical small hall war. If courage won fights, Liam Dillon would be a world champion.

Fighter of the week: Vasyl Lomachenko, a craftsman supreme.

Punch of the week: The left hook from Kenbun Torres that marked the beginning of the end for Reymart Gaballo gets my vote.

Upset of the week: Kenbun Torres had lost three of his last four fights and was facing the WBO No1 in Gaballo, so a huge upset.

Prospect watch: Russian light heavyweight Imam Khataev, an Olympic bronze medallist and 7-0 with 7 wins by TKO, is worth keeping an eye on.

Vasily Lomachenko celebrates stopping George Kambosos (Mikey Williams/Top Rank)

Fight card observations

Rosette: To the ladies, for a good weekend for female boxing.

Red Card: To the ring announcer (Lt Dan Hennessey), who announced Nina Hughes as the winner over Cherneka Johnson, who then had to correct his error and announce Johnson as the winner. You can imagine the rollercoaster of emotions the two fighters suffered. You only had one job to do…

May 12

Vasyl Lomachenko (18-3) W TKO 11 George Kambosos (21-3)

Lomachenko beat Kambosos, putting on a master class of boxing skills, then floored and stopped him in the eleventh round. Lomachenko took control from the start. He was too quick, too mobile, and too clever for a strangely subdued Kambosos. The Australian spent most of the fight on the back foot, never putting Lomachenko under any pressure, which allowed Lomachenko to control the pace of the fight.

Lomachenko was in front on all three cards. He won the vacant IBF lightweight title and took the IBO belt from Kambosos. He was asked about a fight with WBA champion Gervonta Davis but refused to comment, saying he wanted to spend time with his family. Kambosos’s performance was disappointing, as he was never in the fight in any meaningful way.

May 11

Mourad Aliev (11-0) W TKO 3 Dilan Prasovic (17-4)

Southpaw Aliev dismantled Prasovic in three rounds. Aliev retained the WBC International Silver belt with his eighth win by KO/TKO. He was disqualified in the Tokyo Olympics against Frazer Clarke. Montenegrin Prasovic was 200 lbs when losing to Lawrence Okolie in a challenge for the WBO cruiser title but was 232 lbs for this fight, which shows the condition he was in.

May 11

Denzel Bentley (19-3-1) W TKO 2 Danny Dignum (16-2-1)

Bentley stopped Dignum in two rounds. In the second, Bentley drove a right to the body which sent Dignum to the canvas. He beat the count but was floored by another right to the body. He made it to his feet but was immediately under pressure and Bentley landed a right to the head that put Dignum down for the third time. He again made it to his feet, but after completing the eight count, the referee waived his arms to end the fight.

May 11

Eduardo Hernandez (35-2) W TKO 7 Daniel Lugo (27-3-1)

Hernandez ground down Lugo to win a typical Mexican-style war in the seventh round. Hernandez was back in the ring for the first time since losing on a twelfth-round stoppage against O’Shaquie Foster in a challenge for the WBC super-featherweight title in October when Hernandez had a winning lead on two cards and was 22 seconds from being champion.

Eduardo ‘Rocky’ Hernandez vs. Daniel Lugo

May 11

Kirsty Hill (7-2) W PTS 10 Fatuma Zarika (34-14-2)

Hill retained her Commonwealth title with a split decision over Zarika in a fast-paced, entertaining fight. The scores were 96-94 twice for Hill and 97-93 for Zarika. Good win for Hill, who had lost on points to Elif Nur Turhan for the vacant WBC International title in November.

May 11

Lauren Price (7-0) W TEC DEC 9 Jessica McCaskill (12-4-1)

Price won a technical decision over champion McCaskill to collect the IBO and WBA titles. Price used smart footwork a strong right jab and straight lefts to take control from the first. McCaskill had trouble getting past Price’s jab. She was swinging wildly at times, with Price picking her off with quick bursts of punches at distance, countering her on the way in and tying her up inside.

The swelling over McCaskill’s left eye worsened and was hampering her vision. She survived one doctor’s inspection, but with the eye almost closed, the fight was stopped just seconds into the ninth, and it went to the scorecards, with Price winning 90-82 on all three cards.

May 10

Marlon Tapales (38-4) W TKO 1 Nattapong Jankaew (12-4)

Tapales destroyed the overmatched Jankaew. The former IBF and WBA super bantam champion dropped the Thai in a neutral corner early in the opening round. It wasn’t a heavy knockdown and Jankaew made it to his feet.

Tapales then drove Jankaew back to the neutral corner and floored him with an overhand right. Jankaew beat the count, but when he was sent down again, the referee stopped the fight.

May 8

Sergey Lipinets (18-3-1) W PTS 10 Robbie Davies Jr (23-5)

Lipinets floored and outpointed Davis in a war. Lipinets finally caught up with Davies in the fifth, landing some overhand rights that sent Davies down. He beat the count and boxed his way to the bell but was leaking blood heavily from his nose and mouth.

Lipinets connected with a powerful right early in the eighth but Davies took it well only for a left hook to the body to send him to his hands and knees. He was up at nine but a right to the head put him down again later in the round.

Amazingly, in the closing seconds, Davies took the fight to Lipinets and bombarded Lipinets with punches. Lipinets won on scores of a ridiculous 98-89, 95-92 and 96-91. It had been a stirring contest with the mixture of styles, the dramatic knockdowns, the always-threatening power of Lipinets and the courage of Davies.