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Vasyl Lomachenko is coming into the pro ranks about as accomplished as can be, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and considered by many the top amateur fighter in the world in recent years, and he's not looking to waste time with obvious mismatches against ill-prepared foes.
Rey Colon at BoxingScene.com is reporting that not only will Lomachenko make his pro debut on the Bradley-Marquez pay-per-view bill on October 12, but that a very credible opponent in Jonathan Oquendo could be his foe. Oquendo (23-3, 16 KO) scored a TKO-4 win last night in Puerto Rico over journeyman Miguel Tamayo, and before that had last been seen giving Wilfredo Vazquez Jr a hell of a good fight in October 2012.
The 30-year-old Oquendo is not considered a serious contender at 122 or 126 (where Lomachenko is looking to fight), but he's miles beyond the sort of first-match foes we see for basically anybody these days, including Top Rank's other highly-hyped two-time Olympic champion, Zou Shiming.
Is Lomachenko prepared for a legit pro opponent right off the bat? Could this be a serious miscalculation on his part?