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Steve KimESPN
Vasiliy Lomachenko’s right hand injury, suffered during his KO victory over Anthony Crolla Friday night, is not as serious as previously feared, Lomachenko’s manager, Egis Klimas, confirmed to ESPN on Saturday.
“His knuckle, it’s just dislocated, no surgery needed,” Klimas said after an MRI was performed in a Los Angeles hospital. “They just put it back in place, three weeks in a cast and he’ll be good to go.”
Lomachenko defeated Crolla by TKO in Round 4 to retain his unified lightweight championship. It’s believed that Lomachenko suffered the injury while landing the right hook to the top of the head that sent Crolla crashing to the canvas.
Klimas is not that concerned about the injury.
“We will see him back in the ring, most likely in September,” Klimas said.
Lomachenko injured his right shoulder in May during his 10th-round stoppage victory over Jorge Linares at Madison Square Garden in New York. Days later he underwent surgery for a torn right labrum that sidelined him for several months. He returned to the ring last December when he outpointed Jose Pedraza over 12 rounds and didn’t use his powerful right hand as much.
On Friday, Lomachenko looked more like his dominant self and he showed off a complete offensive arsenal against Crolla, who was simply overwhelmed by the power of the three-division world titlist.