Although Vasiliy Lomachenko made a conscious decision to re-enter Ukraine in order to aid in the defense of his country against an ongoing Russian invasion, his team is still looking to see if they can finalize a world title fight against George Kambosos.
Lomachenko and Kambosos have reportedly been very close to striking a deal for June 5 fight in Melbourne, Australia, but now getting that fight over the line is proving problematic because Lomachenko cannot just readily leave the country at this point.
In Ukraine, which is currently under martial law, able-bodied men between 18 and 60 years old are prohibited from leaving so they can help defend the nation. And while it was quite courageous for Lomachenko to go back into Ukraine, it puts his upcoming title hopes in serious jeopardy as Kambosos’ team want an opponent finalized by the end of this month so they can benefit from a typical two-month promotional push.
To that end Lomachenko’s team is currently engaging in talks to see if Lomachenko might be allowed to leave the country in order to train for the world title bout, because if not the Kambosos fight is likely to lean towards WBC titleholder Devin Haney.