When George Kambosos Jr. questioned the legitimacy of Devin Haney’s CMB lightweight belt on Monday, two Americans said the Australian only surprised the world late last year by fighting a poorly prepared Teofimo Lopez.
Kambosos (20-0, 10KOs) burst onto the international map and became a household name in Australia, when he won by split decision at Madison Square Garden last November.
Australian boxing legend Jeff Fenech was one of many experts who were surprised by the result.
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‘F *** ing actor bro’ Haney sleds the Australian | 00:43
Fenech believes 23-year-old Haney (27-0, 15KOs) is the favorite before Sunday’s fight, but he wouldn’t bet on Kambosos, at least publicly, after the Australian’s shocking result last year.
“If I saw them both on TV, Devin Haney has the best skill set,” Fenech told foxsports.com.au.
“George has the speed and he is a strong and confident guy, but he is not the biggest guy in the weight division and I think that will count a bit on the day of the fight. But you can’t cancel George Kambosos, he has shown “I will not be against him again.”
Kambosos was at his best with the microphone in his hand on Monday in Melbourne, where the Australian lowered Haney’s world title defense.
The 23-year-old may have defended his CMB title four times, but Kambosos said his Ukrainian predecessor Vasiliy Lomachenko gave a “gift” to his counterpart when he was promoted to “Franchise Champion” by the CMB. .
“I had to go through all the adversity, I had to win my belt, I won it in the hardest way, not like this guy (Haney) … I got the best out of it,” Kambosos said.
George criticizes “rat” Haney for messages 01:52
“He’s the guy with that half-piece he’s parading for, so that’s what I want, that’s what I’m going to wear on Sunday, that’s why he’s here.
“I made this happen, I chose the biggest fights possible, I took our Teofimo López … everyone knew he was ready to fight Lomachenko, this was done, he could not do it because of his war . No problem, Devin. Do you want to take a step? Take a step. And he did, okay. But he was forced to do so.
“I could have fought anyone, I could have fought the garbage man outside if I wanted to, but I chose you, you’re my obligatory (challenger), I chose you.”
Top Rank officer Frank Stea, who watched Haney closely during his training camp in Las Vegas and previously worked alongside Lopez, saw his own path to the world title a little differently.
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He believes the Australian’s victory late last year was against a weakened world champion.
“I think George vs. Lopez, I don’t know if that word is good, but George was fighting a disabled Teofimo Lopez,” Stea told foxsports.com.au from the Top Rank gym in Las Vegas.
“I am not using Teofimo ‘s lung problems as an excuse.
“Teofimo is a great fighter but he is also a very emotional human being. That night it wasn’t him.
“I felt like he wasn’t training. That’s why he went out there in the first round and turned to the fences and credit to George withstood that storm. Credit to him.
“If George is better than the credit I give him, it’s because of the impetus of his last struggle.”
Teofimo López punches George Kambosos during his fight for the championship in November. Source: AFP
Boxing coach Taylor Barry, who was recently on the corner of Tyson Fury and worked with some of the sport’s top names, also believes Lopez was not in the right space for the fight.
“Teofimo Lopez was going through a week of divorce fights, an injured hand, a 30-pound weight reduced the day before the weigh-in,” Barry said from his gym, which he shares with his famous boxing father, Kevin, in Henderson. , on the outskirts of Las Vegas.
“Anyone who has suffered a weight loss like this will be a zombie, he is a big boy, he is 135 (leisure), he is huge, he goes through it and he goes in and out of the camps for 6-9 months, seven different locations, seven different training camps, that’s hard.
“I think Teofimo made it very easy for George Kambosos because he was a heavy bag with his feet. He didn’t punch many times, he was hit with an early shot, he made George Kambosos look great.
“Who has George Kambosos fought for, except for a shattered Lee Selby, who won a split decision in the UK and then Teofimo?”
Kambosos, who left the United States with the light heavyweight titles of the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO and The Ring after his astonishing displeasure, will put everything at stake against Haney to have a chance to convert -be in the unified champion.
But Barry believes Haney will represent a completely different perspective for the Australian despite accepting all the terms and conditions of the Kambosos team.
“Devin Haney is a different guy,” Barry said.
“He’s been wrestling with the highest level of guys since he was in the amateur, multiple world champions, guys like Floyd Mayweather.
“I think Devin will go to Down Under and put his head on it.”