Devin Haney wins by unanimous points decision to become undisputed world Lightweight Champion
Australian George Kambosos Jr stepped through the ropes on home soil for the first time since his epic gladiatorial contest with Téofimo Lopez in which he took the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and The Ring champion titles in an inspiring night for boxing.
His opponent, Devin Haney, the WBC champion 27 straight wins with 15 by KO, stood waiting in the other corner. It should have been the legendary Ukrainian fighter, Vasily Lomachenko, but Russia’s invasion of his country meant that the ring legend decided to opt for fighting on a whole different scale to defend his homeland. So, the American, Devin Haney, nicknamed ‘The Dream’ who had been calling out for an undisputed fight since Lopez won the titles, finally got his wish.
The build-up to the fight included chaotic scenes at the weigh-in, where Kambosos Jr missed weight, ‘bitch’ taunts on Instagram, executioner-style throat cut gestures and tuts of unprofessionalism from boxing pundits around the world.
But the expected blood and guts in the ring never materialised as the undefeated Haney delivered a masterclass of hit and not be hit on his way to victory on all three judge’s scorecards by margins of 116-112, 116-112 and 118-110. In doing so, he became the first boxer since Pernell ‘Sweet Pea’ Whitaker 32 years ago to be crowned undisputed Lightweight champion in the modern era.
Haney was simply too slick, too fast for George Kambosos Jr who despite being roared on by a partizan crowd of 41,000 in the Marvel Stadium, Melbourne in his first defence of his titles, and landing a huge right in the second round of the calibre that dropped Lopez in his previous fight, simply had no answer to the defensive nous and superior movement of the WBC champion. Haney used his jab to control the fight from first to last, claiming he ‘tamed’ Kambosos in the ring.
“I was comfortable,” Haney, 23, said, “I fought a good, smart fight. This is a dream come true.”
A beaten, visibly marked, but unbowed George Kambosos Jr had no complaints afterwards as he suffered his first defeat in 21 fights since he turned professional and lost his collection of belts in the process.
“I’m going to give him full respect for his victory and let him have his time,” said Kambosos.
“We’ll do it again. I have to implement a few things, but I thought the fight was very close. I landed a few shots, but he did what he had to do to get the win. There will be a rematch. I’ll get him back later this year”
Embed from Getty ImagesBig fight nights await both boxers, Lomachenko, and Lopez will be in the mix, but tonight here in Australia, it’s Devin Haney who emerges as the undisputed Lightweight world champion savouring his dream come true.