In a recent interview with boxing social, Eddie Hearn expressed his interest in matching unified lightweight champion George “Ferocious” Kambosos Jr (20-0, 10 KOs) against highly rated Devin “The Dream” Haney (26-0, 15 KOs) next.
“George Kambosos Jr deserves respect, credit, and right now he’s the man. Devin Haney’s our man. Right now George is the man. He had a standout victory, this win for Devin [vs Jojo Diaz] will be another standout, then the two must meet.”
Embed from Getty ImagesGeorge Kambosos Jr vs Devin Haney
Having staked a claim for a George Kambosos Jr vs Devin Haney matchup next, Hearn’s only issue now, and it is a big one, is whether Haney can get through a tough fight this weekend against Joseph Diaz (32-1-1, 15 KOs).
Diaz has only lost once in his professional career, and this was against a world-class lightweight in Gary Allen Russell Jr (31-1, 18 KOs), who also gave Vasily Lomachenko a hard fight. Plus, Diaz is a southpaw who has never been knocked out, so it will be interesting to see if Haney can be the first man to stop him.
Therefore, Haney’s next fight is a fantastic opportunity to see how good the man from California is. If he wins easily and gets the knockout, we could be looking at the potential next king of the lightweight division.
Haney has already beaten top lightweights such as Jorge Linares (47-6, 29 KOs) and Yuriorkis Gamboa (30-4, 18 KOs), yet Diaz would be another brilliant name to add to his resume.
But George Kambosos is no walkover, as Hearn points out and he will now have a big say in who gets crowned king of the division. He shook up the boxing world as promised with a fight for the ages against Lopez and rightly deserves respect. A unification contest between the two is a mouth-watering prospect and the rugged Australian will not give up his titles easily.
Who Else Can Kambosos Jr Fight?
Apart from Haney, Kambosos Jr has other options in such a talented lightweight division. Some lucrative fights could include Ryan Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs), former champion Vasily Lomachenko, or Orlando Romero (14-0, 12 KOs). There is also the option of moving up to super-lightweight to challenge Gervonta “Tank” Davis (25-0, 24 KOs).
All eyes then on Devin Haney v Joseph Diaz this Saturday, and the result will tell us a lot about the landscape of the lightweight division.