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By Dan Ambrose: In a show of good sportsmanship, undisputed lightweight champion Devin Haney (29-0, 15 KOs) negotiated a fight with George Kambosos Jr (20-2, 10 KOs) after defeating him with a 12 round complete cut decision in the rematch last Saturday night. at Rod Laver Stadium in Melbourne, Australia.
Kambosos fought harder than he did in the first fight, but in the end, the skilled Haney passed him.
Like the first fight between them, Haney did a lot of grounding and holding to prevent Kambosos from punching. But in a different situation, Haney connected with hard right hands, and knocked Kambosos out, beating him in his match.
Kambosos suffered a severe cut on his left eye in the 10th round and the bleeding was profuse. Haney was cut on the side of his right eye, but not as bad as Kambosos.
The judges’ scores were 119-109, 118-110, and 118-110. Haney’s win over Kambosos closed the chapter for the two, as Devin dominated both fights, making it pointless for them to rematch.
The reason why Haney fought Kambosos this time is because the wise Aussie put a rematch clause in the contract for the first fight last June.
“I should really be worth the pound-for-pound,” said Devin Haney after the fight. “In the first fight, they said all I had was my jab. Today I came in and showed them my right hand.”
Haney interestingly failed to mention Vasyl Lomachenko after the fight, which could indicate that he will be dismissive of his promoters at Top Rank’s idea of matching him with the Ukrainian talent next.
If Haney really wanted to fight Lomachenko, he would have mentioned right away that he wanted to fight him. Instead, Haney commented later, saying he was ready for all comers.
It is unclear who Haney will fight if he chooses not to face Lomachenko as he needs to face top fighters to bring value to ESPN and grow the subscription base on ESPN+.
Assuming Haney will stay at 135 for his next fight, these are his best options if he doesn’t fight Lomachenko:
- Shakur Stevenson
- Michel Rivera
- Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz
- William Zepeda
“I showed how much I am. I came to Australia not once but twice,” said Haney. “I respected him and I beat the guy twice in his hometown. I definitely deserve to be in the pound-for-pound.
“We take all comers. Whoever it is, we want to fight better fighters in the world. I believe I am the best fighter in the world. Whoever comes forward, bring him.”
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