The Official TSS Lomachenko-Lopez Prediction Page

[ArneK.]

Saturday’s match between Vasyl Lomachenko and Teofimo Lopez at the MGM Grand “Bubble” is the most-talked-about fight since Wilder-Fury II– and the good news for fight fans in North America is that it will air free on ESPN !

Whenever a fight of this magnitude comes down the pike, we ask our panel of writers to share their thoughts. The respondents are listed alphabetically.

MATT ANDRZEJEWSKI -- I have never quite bought into all the hype surrounding Teofimo Lopez. He is talented no doubt but still somewhat raw as we saw in his fight last year against Masayoshi Nakatani. In my opinion Lopez is nowhere near ready for a seasoned fighter such as Lomachenko. I see a replay of Calzaghe-Lacy. Lomachenko by wide unanimous decision.

BERNARD FERNANDEZ -- This isn't exactly a case of an aging, fairly well-worn Joe Louis giving way for Rocky Marciano. Lomachenko hasn't fought in a while, but he does not have so many miles on his boxing odometer that he has left all of his prime in his rear-view mirror. Nor is Lopez as fully formed at this stage as he and his backers are apt to believe. The kid's power might make for a sudden lightning strike, but I see Loma dipping into his deep bag of tricks and fashioning a unanimous-decision victory.

JEFFREY FREEMAN -- Vasyl Lomachenko UD 12. Both exciting fighters have 15 professional fights but there is a vast difference in world class experience favoring Lomachenko. I could see Lopez stunning Lomachenko or scoring a flash knockdown—but not winning. Lomachenko is still good enough to give Teofimo a boxing lesson!

THOMAS HAUSER -- The odds are much too long on this one. Lomachenko has struggled a bit at 135 pounds and Lopez is a big lightweight. I'll pick Lomachenko by decision. But I wouldn't be shocked if Lopez stops him, either by turning the tide with one big shot or breaking Vasyl down with a sustained body attack.

ARNE LANG – The history of boxing is all about young guns blasting out veterans with solid-gold reputations. The “Takeover” is tugging and the odds are juicy, but I just can’t pull the trigger. Lomachenko was reputedly 361-1 as an amateur (87-1 documented), was 6-0 in the semi-pro World Series of Boxing, and is 14-1 as a pro. That makes the Ukrainian one of the greatest winners in the history of sports and betting against him would seem to be as perilous as betting against Joey Chestnut in the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest.

KELSEY McCARSON -- I thought I would be picking Lopez this week, but here we are and I'm going with Lomachenko. Lopez is just 23 years old, and I think he has a bright future ahead of him. But the 32-year-old Ukrainian southpaw savant has an almost absurd boxing skill set at his disposal, and I think Lopez will end up being a little too green and a tad too emotional to get the job done on fight night. Lomachenko via unanimous decision, but it's a fun and close bout that people talk about for a long time.

MATT McGRAIN – There are stories circulating that Vasyl Lomachenko is losing interest; if it is so, Teofimo Lopez may fulfill his prediction of an early knockout. For me though, if Hi-Tech was slacking the ructions would be more audible so the sensible pick remains Lomachenko on points. There are some interesting vibes surrounding this fight though and it might be really fun watching him get there."

SEAN NAM -- Teofimo may possess all the right qualities – size, quickness, power, and counterpunching ability – to theoretically unhorse Vasyl Lomachenko, but he will also be treading in the deep end for the first time in his career. Richard Commey, whom Lopez mowed down in two rounds in his previous bout, is hardly preparation for the stylistic oddity that is Lomachenko; the Ukrainian is the rare pressure fighter who pairs volume with dexterity and precision. Like most supposedly elite fighters today, Lopez’s reputation outstrips his actual accomplishments. It was only two fights ago that Lopez was seen eating a surprising number of right hands by an unheralded and fairly uncomplicated Masayoshi Nakatani. If Lopez cannot find a way to consistently force Lomachenko on his backfoot and stymie his frenetic workrate, he will be in for a long – and punishing – night. Lomachenko, a natural 126-pounder, may be at a distinct size disadvantage at 135, as his fights against Pedraza, Linares, and Campbell have revealed, but he has otherwise been dominant at the weight. A competitive start turns ugly by the end. Lomachenko by UD. – SEAN NAM

TED SARES -- Teofimo Lopez will put Loma through Hell during the first round, but then Loma will figure out the brash Lopez and stop him brutally in the mid rounds. The fact is, we have been hearing too much talk from Lopez and that has caused many to forget just who Vasyl Lomachencko is. On Saturday he will remind us.

PHIL WOOLEVER -- Having seen neither gentleman fight live, I'm going purely on statistics and in that sense the only category favoring Lopez is age. More crucial factors like experience and quality of opposition point to a dominating win for Lomachenko, with around a 75% chance of a stoppage whoever wins.

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[KO Digest]

The last time nobody picked the underdog it was Ruiz upsetting AJ, and going back a stretch, none of the prediction panelist on RingTV at the time picked Brook to beat Shaun Porter but he did.

[57Blues]

First will it be a good fight ? Yes no doubt, this is no quit on the stool fight. Can things happen Yes. Cuts body shots are long lasting. Anything can throw a fight off, a REF who tries too hard to stay nuetral. Judges who want to keep working. And all the talk of LOMO LOMO I never liked it. Were they telling lies ? NO but they were pushing that is for sure. Talking ESPN specifically and all that followed there lead. Was lomo just an innocent by stander in the hype ? No Way. He rolled with it. Right or wrong he has. Create a doubt and double down on it. Make it happen and change it up again. That is all good fighters at work. Not just Lomo Lomo. Kid has got pressure good for him, turn up the heat, generate some of his own. Know it for what it is This is not a charity fight. This is not like that heavywieght game show with the lights on the suit and the burger king hat. This will be and is a fight. That in itself is good enough. And no one knows the winner or we would all be rich. A long time ago. I will stop.
BLUES

Song of the fight House Rent Boogie by John Lee Hooker...... yea that one from back then put your cans on and listen sound better then that announcer guy on ESPN. Nothing wrong with kissing the ring but he is kissing a dif kind of ring not one with ropes around it. Leave it at that

[teaser]

Can't see Lomo losing ..lopez doesn't have the work rate ...he'll be too busy dealing with angles if he doesn't apply pressure all night long ...long nite for Lopez (if his ribs last that is )

[Kid Blast]

I think Loma will break down Lopez with body work and then finish him upstairs.

[57Blues]

LOMO thinks he is the only guy that grew up on tough streets where you had to back up your words ? Wellcome to America. This is no LOMO Party ESPN may play it that way but Lopez is fighting for something more. Sometimes all the skills get lost in a fight. They get used up and they get tested and they dont do the job that a real fight can make happen. Lopez keeps it real let LOMO know your streets are no toughter then anywhere else. Just a dif name, just a place you think is better then the USA Here for the dollars well you going to learn something tonight. Got a hungry kid that dont know how to loose ? He was molded to be a fighter, dont forget that. He was trained to speak a certain way. This one is dif. He gets hurt and he looses. Sometimes a fight breaks out in a ring. When it does skills fail you. If those skills are as geat as you yourself believe makes no dif.

[FrankinDallas]

I don't know who will win this fight, and that's all I can say.

[KO Digest]

Whenever making a boxing prediction you should consider two options. The result you believe is most likely to happen. In this case a Loma UD. And the result you think is least likely to happen. I think for most people, that would have been Lomachenko gets dominated, loses a UD. Nobody thought that was even possible, did they?? Well, that’s what happened.

The most least likely thing, the result where I’m sure that such an end-result works out best for the casino who sets the odds, controls how people perceive potential results, and thereby protects themselves by making the actual outcomes (reasonably expected by them) seem far-fetched until they happen.