Vasyl Lomachenko vs Jason Sosa close for April 8

Vasyl Lomachenko may be facing another titleholder at 130 pounds when he returns to HBO on April 8, as ESPN.com reports that Jason Sosa is the leading contender to face Lomachenko in his next outing.

Lomachenko (7-1, 5 KO) holds the WBO super featherweight titleholder, while Sosa (20-1-4, 15 KO) holds the WBA “world” super featherweight title.

It was a breakout year in 2016 for Sosa, who came off of a disputed draw — with most feeling Sosa had lost the fight — against Nicholas Walters in late 2015 to upset Javier Fortuna on June 24 in Beijing, taking the WBA “world” belt. He defended successfully on November 12 against Stephen Smith in Monte Carlo.

The New Jersey native would be a lot closer to home this time if the fight comes off as now expected, as he would face Lomachenko at the new MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill, Maryland, a suburb of Washington, DC.

Promoter Bob Arum says that while he feels Lomachenko is unbeatable, he considers Sosa a “respectable” opponent, and says that he has a “puncher’s chance.” He’s certainly got some momentum going into the fight, which is about all you can ask for someone going up against Lomachenko, who looked like a buzzsaw in 2016.

Last year, Lomachenko went 2-0, absolutely dominating and stopping both Rocky Martinez and Nicholas Walters, forcing Walters to quit after seven rounds on November 26 in his last fight.