Loma, López Meet During Presscon; Loma Leading in Betting Odds (Analysis + Prediction)

By Carlos Costa

Super exciting fighters Vasiliy Lomachenko and Teofimo López met during a Top Rank presser designed to the hype even further the thrilling unification clash between the Planet’s top two Lightweight world champions.

During those minutes near each other, looking at each other, “Loma” behave more calmed, focused and collected – just like Neo from the Matrix – while the younger Latino-blood warrior Teófimo López was hotter.

Will they act the same way on top of the ring: one methodical and effective, the other guns blazing? That is for all of us to find out Saturday (Sunday morning in the Philippines), right?

As of now, Loma is favorite to win among betting fans. Odds at the moment favor Loma -415 over López +301.

That in Filipino terms means this: if you bet 4,150 pesos that Loma wins, the you’d earn 1,000 pesos.

On the contrary, if your heart is on Teófimo and you bet 1,000 pesos on him, you’d make 4,150 pesos. Those are the odds from online betting houses. Are they fair? What do you think about that?

Myself, normally, I do not bet nor gamble on anything. But still I like to find out about odds in major boxing fights, just like this one.

Amigos, odds favor the far more experienced, far more accomplished Lomachenko, and if I have to bet (I won’t do it, promise), I’d bet for Loma. How about you, would you bet on him, or bet on the younger big talker, charismatic, fast power-puncher Teofimo López?

I share this with you: even though López is of Latin blood, same as I am, I still prefer Loma. That’s because I think Loma’s out-of-this-world hologram boxing skills encrypted in a clandestine software out of this dimension will deal Teófimo his first defeat. That’s what I think, but we shall see.

Furthermore, Teófimo’s theory that Loma is an old man, whose best fighting years are in the back mirror; and that he (Loma) is “on the way out,” while he (Teófimo López) is “on the way in,” I do not buy it.

At 32, Loma is far from being done. In my mind, Loma is still Loma, and perhaps now even better, more matured, more talented fighter right now than when battled lion-heart Mexican brawler Orlando Salido more than 6 years ago. (My humble opinion)

In addition, Loma’s tough moment, being dropped on his ass by awesome and tough veteran Venezuelan warrior Jorge Linares proved that Loma owes the superior fighting skills and boxing IQ that can pull him away from imminent danger, making him find ways to prevail over his enemy, just like Neo did over agent Smith in their climatic epic fight, remember?

Plus let’s not forget that Jorge Linares is one heck of a fighter, a battle-tested 3-division world champion with heart, brain and balls.

In Linares, Loma was not facing a washed-out mediocre boxer. Linares was and is outstanding. In fact, he was the reigning world champion at the time, and Loma stopped him in ten. That’s what counts.

Therefore, the appropriate question is this:

Is Teófimo López in a class superior to the one of Jorge Linares?

Can this bragging hot shot Teófimo López do to Loma something amazing that no boxer has ever done before?

López says yes. He has promised his followers that he will rock and stop Loma on Saturday, retiring him.

There are videos of Teófimo, both in English and Spanish, assuring just that.

In reply the awesome ever calmed Loma says:
“(What Teófimo Lopez would say about beating me) are only words. It is a video in another language (Spanish), that is not mine.
“We’ll see each other on Saturday,” added the Ukrainian superstar Vasiliy Lomachenko, one of the world’s top pound-4-pound fighters in today’s boxing.

LOMA VS LOPEZ CONCLUSIONS

In conclusion, I think Loma will defeat Teofimo Lopez in a thrilling showdown, in my mind via TKO in the final rounds.
In addition, I anticipate a really enjoyable, exciting battle, far more electrifying than the snoozer between Loma and Rigondeaux, simply because Lopez is a warrior of pride, guts and teeth. However, Lopez has never faced in battle a man like Lomachenko. In fact, who has?

What’s more, I think that Loma’s effective, unreadable and confusing attacks from his southpaw stance would puzzle and baffle Lopez, who in his 15 pro fights has never collided with a left-hand fighter of the caliber and condition of Vasiliy Lomachenko.

As a matter of fact, in his 15 fights, Teofimo has only fought 1 southpaw opponent: Diego Magdaleno, whom Teofimo brutalized in 7 chapters early last year. But we cannot compare Magdaleno with Lomachenko: in quality of boxing, they are light-years apart.

Surely, Teofimo might have sparred in training camp against fast, unpredictable southpaws. But one thing is sparring some lefty boxer in the gym, another totally different is fighting a real battle against master boxer Lomachenko.

This truth we can take to the bank: Teofimo has never engaged a fighter as Lomachenko. Does Lopez have the fantastically superior skills to ravage and stun Loma? Mis queridos amigos de boxeo, I don’t think so. Of course, I could be wrong. So, let’s have a great, thrilling time finding out who defeats who, and how.

Finally, we can be sure of one premise: the superb quality of the two lightweight champions assure us that Loma vs Lopez will be an awesome, unforgettable exciting combat, one of the highlight fights for 2020. What do you think?

Photos courtesy of Top Rank