Former unified world lightweight triple champion Vasyl Lomachenko of Ukraine, landing short left and right hooks almost at will, stopped World Boxing Organization fifth-ranked lightweight Masayoshi Nakatani of Teiken Boxing Gym in the ninth round in Las Vegas Nevada on June 26 (June 27 Japan time), setting a stage for his rematch with Teofimo Lopez of the U.S. to whom Lomachenko lost the titles last October.

The technical knockout of the scheduled 12-rounder at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas came 1 minute and 48 seconds into the ninth round when southpaw Lomachenko landed a barrage of right-left combinations to the head, prompting the referee to stop the fight just when Nakatani fell on his right knee.

The speedy Lomachenko, 33, controlled the fight from the opening bell with his right hooks and double and triple left hooks while moving side to side.

While the 32-year-old Nakatani, who is 12-cm taller than 170cm Lomachenko, occasionally landed his left jabs and right hooks and uppercuts, the quick-moving Lomachenko did not allow him to follow up.
Immediately before the end of the fifth round, Lomachenko landed a short right hook to the head, sending Nakatani rolling down for a mandatory eight count.

Nakatani’s right eyelid got puffed up as the round went by due to Lomachenko’s short straight lefts and hooks.

With the victory, Lomachenko, the gold medalist at 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympics with an incredible 396-1 win-loss record during amateur days, has 15 wins, including 11 KOs, against two losses. For his part, Nakatani fell to a 19-2 tally with 13 KOs.

In one of the undercards, Nakatani’s compatriot Subaru Murata made a successful professional debut by stopping Kevin Monroy of the U.S. in the second round in a super bantamweight four-rounder.

The 24-year-old lefthander, who fought 80 bouts during his amateur days, sent Monroy to the canvas with a straight left, prompting the referee to wave off the fight 1 minute and 42 seconds into the round. Photo by Teiken Boxing Gym