Vasiliy Lomachenko dismisses his rival George Kambosos Jr.'s jabs about forcing him into retirement

Vasiliy Lomachenko is nearing his forties, having turned 36 years old on Feb. 17. This has caused his foe, George Kambosos Jr., who is six years his junior, to promise to retire the Ukrainian great. However, the Australian's comments were brushed aside by Lomachenko at the pre-fight press conference.

When asked for his thoughts on his opponent's promise to retirement, Lomachenko was unmoved, claiming that the same statements have been made by prior opponents. Instead, the Ukrainian great prefers to let his boxing do the talking, imploring everyone to tune in on fight night. He said:

"I heard this, not first time. But, you know, for me, it's not a surprise and see what happens Sunday at 12. See you in the ring."

However, when asked whether this could be his final fight, Lomachenko answered with uncertainty, stating that neither he nor anyone could predict his future. He added:

"Nobody knows, you know? It's, I don't know what happen after this fight. I don't know how is my body will be. I don't know."

Check out Vasiliy Lomachenko's response to George Kambosos' vow (3:43 and 9:30):

Despite Kambosos' confidence ahead of the bout, he is coming off a lackluster win over Maxi Hughes. Some opined that the Australian actually lost the fight, despite walking away from it with a majority decision win and the IBO lightweight title. He has struggled ever since suffering back-to-back losses to Devin Haney.

However, with his matchup with Lomachenko set for this evening, 'Ferocious' has been vocal about how good his preparation has been. So, he will step into the ring determined to recapture the magic he had during his undefeated days, and walk away with the vacant IBF lightweight title.

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Despite retirement talk, Vasiliy Lomachenko only has 20 professional fights

Vasiliy Lomachenko is an anomaly in boxing. He is 36 years old and facing retirement talk from his opponents. Yet, he has only taken part in 20 professional fights. However, this is due to how extensive his amateur career has been, and always prioritized quality over quantity.

Check out Vasiliy Lomachenko's stoppage win over former world champion Jorge Linares:

In 20 fights, Lomachenko has beaten nine world champions, while boxers generally rack up far more wins against lesser competition before reaching such a tally of titleholders. Thus, the hyper-skilled Ukrainian has fought a higher volume of elite competition despite his relatively short record.