George Kambosos: ‘I’m not here for tune-up fights, f–k that s–t!

By Boxing News - 12/03/2021 - Comments

By Allan Fox: Undisputed lightweight champion George Kambosos Jr. insists that he will take on a BIG name for the first defense of his four belts, and he’s not interested in any tune-up level opponents.

Many boxing fans believe the 28-year-old Australian Kambosos won the lottery in defeating what appeared to be a weight-drained and ring rusty Teofimo Lopez by a 12 round split decision last Saturday night on November 27th at Madison Square Garden in New York.

The unbeaten Kambosos, one of the most confident fighters in the sport, feels that his win over Teofimo isn’t a fluke and that he can do the same thing against any of the top lightweights in the division, and he intends on proving it.

Fame could be fleeting for Kambosos

We’re going to find out soon if Kambosos can back up his bold talk when it comes to him and his promoter Lou DiBella picking out his next opponent.

Kambosos says he will be on a “scouting mission” this weekend with him attending the Devin Haney vs. Joseph ‘Jojo’ Diaz Jr. and Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis vs. Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz to possibly pick the most impressive winner as his next opponent.

Some fans believe the valid reason Kambosos will be attending those two fights is to have the cameras on him, be seen by millions of boxing fans at home, and drink in all the adoration from the fans.

If all that’s the real reason Kambosos will be attending the Haney-Diaz and Tank-Cruz fights, you can’t begrudge the man his 15 minutes of fame.

Assuming Kambosos will go down in history as yet another example of a one-hit-wonder, you can’t fault him for milking every second of the attention he receives as the undisputed lightweight champion before he’s soundly beaten one of the top dogs and sent skittering back into the obscurity from whence he came.

Kambosos wants a big name opponent

George says he’s not interested in taking a tune-up opponent, but it’s hard to believe that he won’t do precisely that.

In looking at Kambosos’ performance in his last three fights against Teofimo, Lee Selby, and Mickey Bey, he may be over his head if he chooses to fight Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis or Vasily Lomachenko.

This writer doubts Kambosos will pick Tank or Lomachenko because that would arguably be a disaster for him. Kambosos’ Harvard-educated promoter Lou DiBella is astute enough to know the end result for him if he stirs up Gervonta or Lomachenko.

The most likely guy that Kambosos will choose for his next fight is WBC lightweight champion Devin Haney, as he’s not a puncher, and he was exposed by his last opponent Jorge Linares.

The money Kambosos will make fighting Haney probably won’t be anywhere near what he would get battling Tank Davis, but it’s a winnable fight at least.

This writer doesn’t see Kambosos beating Haney, but he’ll have a chance, though, if he states the contest in Australia.

“It’s a good fight; I might be there as well. Isaac Cruz might not be accustomed to that moment, but he’s a Pitbull, he’s tiny, but he can fight, and he will come,” said Kambosos to Fighthype on Gervonta Davis’s opponent for this Sunday night.

Image: George Kambosos: 'I'm not here for tune-up fights, f--k that s--t!

“There will be a homecoming defense in front of 80,000 people, but it’s going to be against the big names,” said  Kambosos. “I’m not here for tune-up fights; I feel great, I feel fresh. I’m not here for tune-up fights, f*** that s***.

“A decision will be made very soon,” said Kambosos on his next fight. “When all these fights are wrapped up, I will have a very solid person in my head. There will be a very major announcement. The next step is to fight in a stadium fight in Australia. I can go until I’m 40, maybe longer.

“No, he came fully prepared,” said Kambosos when asked if Teofimo Lopez wasn’t at his 100% best physically for their fight last weekend.

“He had nine or ten months to prepare for the fight regardless of the Covid and whatever else.

“And he had nine or ten months to make the weight, and he made the weight. He came prepared, but he just wasn’t prepared for what I bring and the dog fight and the warrior that I am,” Kambosos said.

George expects to be the underdog again

If Kambosos takes on Lomachenko, Tank Davis, Devin Haney, or even Ryan Garcia, he likely will be the underdog. There’s nothing wrong with that.

Kambosos shouldn’t get upset when it comes to being the underdog because it’s not personal.

The oddsmakers will have evaluated Kambosos’ talent and conclude that he’s not good enough to beat those fighters.

Yeah, Kambosos pulled off an upset against Teofimo, but that fighter was coming off a COVID-19 illness, 13-month layoff, and looked weight drained.

If the injury reports are accurate, Teofimo was up against it fighting Kambosos and would have been in trouble against almost any top 10 contenders. The game plan that Teofimo’s trainer put together was a foolish one, especially for a fighter coming off a COVID illness.

“Any other lightweight that got hit by their shots would have gone down, but I’m made of steel. Again, he said that. I’m a different breed, and these belts will make me even hungrier.

“I got under his skin, I got into his head, and that’s what I’ve been doing for many, many years. They thought they could take me out with the power that he had there.

“The Lomachenko fight that he [Teofimo] had so much success in, the knockout of Commey. They thought they were going to take me out but little did they know, I’m made out of steel,” Kambosos said.

“Probably in my next fight, I’ll be the underdog again. I thrive on being the underdog; I love it,” said Kambosos.

“Keep winning and keep showing my greatness. No disrespect to Kostya Tszyu; he was not born in Australia. I was born in Australia. I’ve come through the Australian ranks. I am the greatest fighter in Australian history. I know where I stand. No one has ever done what I’ve done

“Styles make fights. No one believed what I would do to [Teofimo] Lopez and that I would put him on his a** in the first round, and no one believed I would outbox and outpower him.

‘Why protect our zero?’ – Kambosos

The reason fighters protect their zeroes is that they can make more money with an unbeaten record, so many promoters tend to spoonfed their guys exclusively weak opposition because they don’t want to mess up their revenue streams.

Not all promoters match their fighter’s weak opposition, but unfortunately, it’s widespread.

Even superstars choose to guard their records by fighting only guys they know they can beat.

For example, look at Canelo Alvarez. Instead of facing guys that could give him a tough fight and possibly beat him like David Benavidez, Artur Beterbiev, Jermall Charlo, or Demetrius Andrade, you’ve seen him fighting Billy Joe Saunders, Caleb Plant, Avni Yildirim, and Rocky Fielding.

In boxing, you’re not forced to compete against the best to make a lot of money the way you would if you played in the NFL or NBA.

“It’s going to be a fight. I feel great at 135, and there’s a lot of unfinished business at 135,” said Kambosos on his next match.

“If one of these guys, Lomachenko, has two losses, and Lopez has his first loss. One of these guys this weekend will lose. What’s to say that I don’t fight one of these guys to give them a shot if they look good?

“Why do we have to protect our zero? Why is every fighter scared to take a risk? I’ve taken risk after risk and put my life on the line. What because I’m afraid of my zero? No, because I care about my legacy. If I fall chasing greatness, so be it.

“We have to get rid of this zero. I’m 20-0 and undefeated, but we really have to get rid of this zero because you’ll see even more fights. Look at the Haglers, the Hearns, the Durans, and Sugar Ray Leonard. All these legends, they fought and fought and fought. Why can’t we do this,” said Kambosos.