By Miguel Rivera
A few years ago, Top Rank's CEO Bob Arum signed a group of top amateurs including Jose Ramirez, Oscar Valdez, Felix Verdejo and the pick of the litter - two-time Olympic gold medal winner Vasyl Lomachenko.
Lomachenko made history on Saturday night by winning his second divisional world title in only seven fights, with a brutal knockout of Rocky Martinez.
On that undercard, from the Theater in New York's Madison Square Garden, Puerto Rican sensation Felix Verdejo blasted out Juan Martinez in five rounds to get his career back on track.
When Arum signed up all of these amateurs, he spoke with Lomachenko to get his take. Lomachenko fought and beat Valdez, Ramirez and Verdejo.
Lomachenko beat just about everyone he ever fought with the most impressive amateur record in history, 396-1 - and the one loss to Albert Selimov he avenged twice.
According to Arum, Lomachenko told him that Verdejo was the best fighter that he ever faced in the amateurs. Verdejo raised his pro record on Saturday night to 22-0 and 15 knockouts, and is viewed as the next Puerto Rican superstar to take the torch currently held by former four division world champion Miguel Cotto, who is likely going to retire after one or two more fights.
"I have a story to tell. When we signed Vasyl Lomachenko, I asked him about Oscar Valdez, Jose Ramirez and Verdejo, because Lomachenko fought all of them. He gave me his assessment on each guy. He said out of everyone, Verdejo was the best fighter that he faced in his amateur career," Arum said.
