Finally been able to watch the fight. I was following the RBR here last night and read some threads since, but I've had to wait until now for a watchable recording. My card was, surprisingly to me, 85-85 at the time of the knockout. However, it did feel very harsh to score 10-8 for Linares in round 6, which would have gone 10-9 the other way without the knockdown. Without the knockdown, the card would have been 87-84. I gave the 2nd, 6th, 7th and 9th to Linares. Lomachenko landed a nice combination in the 2nd but most of the rest came from Linares. I was primed for the 9th - @IntentionalButt had scolded people for succumbing to the fallacy of overrating Linares's improved workrate in this round. However, I simply thought Linares was busier and landed more. The 4th and 8th were masterpieces by Lomachenko, some beautiful boxing. I have to give huge credit to Linares for a really good showing. Lomachenko looked, if hardly "ordinary" here, then at least mortal. Timing Lomachenko and letting your hands go when you get the chance seem to be the only way to stop him, and Linares had success with both here. But I think this fight was only going to end one way in the end. But still, he should be proud of a great effort. He's a lovely boxer to watch. As for Lomachenko, he is simply one of the geniuses of my lifetime, I think. Lionel Messi, Joanna Newsom, Brian Cranston, Lena Headey, Floyd Mayweather (to mix my disciplines somewhat) - all are people who make or made others around them look ordinary, on a lower plane. Peerless, in other words. Loma is another. Tonight wasn't the purest example of what he can do, but it did show us another side of him. He is simply a joy to watch, a challenge to those like me who don't believe "sport is art". An affirmation of how great our species can be. Cerebral, athletic, skillful, graceful (that footwork though...). I do think people are putting waaay too much significance on the KD. Lomachenko was walking in without caution, then got knocked backwards by a sharp shot. He lost his balance. No sign of knees going, and was up instantly. It's not a sign that he's packing glass or anything, people need to calm down. SRR, SRL, Ali, Lewis, Calzaghe, Duran - great names all, and being knocked down or out doesn't change that. However, if he stays at 135 or even moves up, he'll pay dearly for getting caught like that. I don't think we'll ever see him fight Crawford, though Garcia is a mouthwatering possibility. I just don't want to see Lomachenko lose because his opponent was too big. I only want to see him lose because he got outfought. Anyway, I hope we can all agree that he's #1 P4P right now. His resumé after 12 fights is shocking. Record-breaking three-weight champion with mostly one-sided wins over Linares, Rigondeaux, Russell, Sosa, Walters. Twelve fights. 12.
