Lomachenko breaks hand, outclasses Thai challenger

Vasyl Lomachenko goes to his corner after dropping Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo in the fourth round. Photo from Top Rank’s Twitter account

MANILA, Philippines – Ukranian Vasyl Lomachenko broke his left hand but that didn’t keep him from toying with mandatory challenger Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo of Thailand to retain his WBO featherweight crown on Sunday in the undercard of the Pacquiao-Algieri title fight at The Venetian in Macau.

Lomachenko, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, decked the overmatched Piriyapinyo with under 30 seconds left in the fourth round with a crushing left hook to the face before settling for a unanimous decision victory. The three judges had it, 120-107, giving Lomachenko all 12 rounds.

Lomachenko, a southpaw, though, reportedly broke his left hand that may have kept him from knocking the come-forward Piriyapinyo, who impressively stayed on his feet despite taking solid shots throughout the fight, out.

The 26-year-old Lomachenko hiked his win-loss slate to 3-1, with one knockout.

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