By Sean Jones: Vasily Lomachenko and Ryan Garcia have surpassed Devin Haney as potential options for George Kambosos Jr. to fight in 2022.
Undisputed lightweight champion Kambsosos’s negotiations with WBC champ Haney have hit a snag over the financial package, so that fight is now looking unlikely to happen.
According to Chris Mannix of DAZN, Ryan Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) is now viewed as the frontrunner to get the fight with the unbeaten Kambosos (20-0, 13 KOs). The fighters would take interim bouts in early 2022, and then meet later this year. Vasily Lomachenko is another option for Kambosos’ next fight.
If Top Rank promoter Bob Arum is able to put together a fight between his fighter Lomachenko and Kambosos Jr, it would be a huge accomplishment.
After Arum’s company won Friday’s purse bid for the Tyson Fury vs. Dillian Whyte fight, setting up a fight between Kambosos Jr and Lomachenko would be massive.
The Golden Boy promoted Ryan, 23, will be fighting in April in an interim fight, whereas Kambosos Jr. will be returning to the ring in June.
Did Haney price himself out?
Haney (27-0, 15 KOs) may have assumed that the fight with Kambosos Jr. would be a massive payday for him over what he’d been getting for his fights against Joseph ‘Jojo’ Diaz Jr, Jorge Linares, and Yuriorkis Gamboa.
Devin has been getting paid top dollar for his fights against aging veterans since he signed with Matchroom Boxing and some believe that he’s been overpaid.
Haney’s promoter Eddie Hearn wants to hurry him up to make him a star, but it appears he’s going to lose out on his chance to try and make that happen against Kambosos.
Kambosos – Haney talk are stagnant
“There’s been a lot of intense negotiations for George Kambosos’ next fight. A lot of those early talks have centered around Kambosos against Devin Haney,” said Chris Mannix to the DAZN Boxing Show.
“What I’ve been told this week is that talks between Haney and Kambosos are effectively dormant. I wouldn’t go as far as to say they’re dead because nothing in boxing is truly dead, but the people that I’ve talked to who are involved in these discussions have said that there just isn’t a deal to be had right now.
“The biggest reason is because there isn’t a financial package that is satisfactory to Devin Haney and his team. So at this point, it seems like money is the biggest obstacle in making a fight between Haney and Kambosos. At this point, it doesn’t look like that fight is going to happen.
“Look, there are certainly a lot of cooks in the kitchen on something like this. I don’t think it’s just one person doing one thing. You’ve got a lot of people involved.
“Of course, DAZN is involved as the broadcaster, network, and obviously streaming service that is interested in getting involved in boxing in Australia,” said Mannix.
“Kambosos is a big part of something like that. At this point, there isn’t the money that is going to satisfy Team Haney. That’s what I’ve been told. Kamsbosos’ team are looking in another direction,” said Mannix.
It’s perhaps for the better that the talks between Kambosos Jr and Haney died because that wouldn’t have been a good fight.
Haney lacks charisma, and his fighting style is ugly to watch. All that clinching and jabbing Haney does is so painfully boring.
Lomachenko & Ryan Garcia options
“The two directions they’re looking at strongest at this point are at Vasily Lomachenko and potentially a deal that could see Kambosos square off against Ryan Garcia,” continued Mannix.
“Let’s start with the Lomachenko side of this. Lomachenko and Top Rank have been very amenable to whatever Kambosos wants to do. Lomachenko’s primary focus is not to make top dollar in a fight like this.
“It’s to be involved in a fight that would make him the undisputed 135-lb champion to get four belts. So he has been willing to be flexible on the money for a situation like this.
“That’s made these conversations easy. Top Rank and Kambosos’ side have created a framework for a deal that makes some sense. So there’s some momentum there as far as making a deal between Kambosos and Lomachenko,” said Mannix.
Sean Jones would be shocked at this point if Kambosos Jr. fights Lomachenko because that’s a step too far. While it’s great that Kambosos beat the injured Teofimo Lopez last November, he’s probably not going to have any success against a healthy Lomachenko.
Loma would be 2-fight deal
“Devin wants what he wants,” said Mannix. “All I can tell you is that the people that have been involved with Kambosos have been able to, not an agreement per se, but are on the same page as far as money goes to make a Kambosos – Lomachenko fight happen.
“They’re not on the same page as far as money goes to make a Kambosos – Haney fight happen,” said Mannix.
“According to Eddie [Hearn], Eddie said that Devin would be going into this fight solely to really capture these belts, and obviously he’s not going to take crumbs and peanuts,” said AK.
“But shifting gears; credit to Kambosos if he’s willing to go into a fight with Lomachenko. That Loma that just came from a [Richard] Commey fight, the first time defending those belts, I mean, obviously Kambosos wants to ride this wave.
“I’m not saying he’s [Kambosos] a one-hit-wonder. I’m not saying that, but do you want to defend all your titles against a guy like Lomachenko right away? If I’m a manager, I’m against that,” said AK.
“It wouldn’t just be a one-off. It’s a two-fight deal with Lomachenko and as well,” said Mannix about Kambosos having the chance to fight Lomachenko in a rematch if he were to lose.
“There will be a rematch clause involved in that contract with Lomachenko,” said Mannix.
You can argue that the only point of having a two-fight deal with Lomachenko is for Kambosos to get a second payday after he gets obliterated in the first fight.
Loma will train in Australia
“Lomachenko has expressed not only interest to go to Australia, but from what I’ve been told from Lomachenko’s side, he’d do his while training camp in Australia,” said Mannix.
“He’d not effectively move there, but he’d be a citizen basically for six to eight weeks whatever he needs for his training camp.
“To kind of boil it down, there are a lot of synergies when it comes to the talks between Lomachenko and Kambosos and not the type of synergy that you need to make a fight happen between Haney’s side and Kambosos,” said Mannix.
Ryan Garcia better chance of getting fight
“So the difference is we’re talking Ryan Garcia is a Golden Boy guy and obviously Devin is Matchroom. So it’s more likely to make a deal between Golden Boy and Lou DiBella for Ryan Garcia? What’s the difference” said AK.
“I would say at this point there is more optimistic that a deal could be struck on that side [Ryan Garcia],” said Mannix. “The difference in that deal from what I’ve been told is both fighters would have interim fights before they faced each other.
“Garcia, as we know, is penciled in to fight in April in his first fight since January 2021. Kambosos, I’ve been told, wants to fight in June on the Queen’s birthday holiday over in Australia, which is a big event on that day.
“So, if you had Garcia, this is all discussed at this point. If you had Garcia fighting in April and Kambosos fighting in June, then the idea at least is to have both of these guys meet in a fight before the end of the year,” said Mannix.
“I spoke with Kambsos via text message during this week, and he reiterated his desire to have a big fight in his next fight out. He said on the record, ‘Let’s go Haney and Matchroom. Let’s go Vasily Lomachenko and Top Rank. Let’s make a deal, let’s get it on,'” said Mannix.
Kambosos must be smart
“You also have to remember that as much as Kambosos wants that big fight, he has to be financially smart here,” Mannix continued. “This may be his one opportunity to cash that lottery ticket.
“If you’re in a position where you have to backtrack a little bit and take a victory lap kind of fight before you go into that next big fight sometimes you got to do it.
“Every fighter ever says they’re going to win their next fight. Come on, how many fighters have you heard say, ‘My next fight is going to be a big one. It’s going to be huge, it’s going to be whatever,’ and then it isn’t,” said Mannix in addressing Kambosos’s self-confidence.
“It’s kind of as simple as that. Sometimes the finances get in the way of making fights like this happen,” said Mannix.
Ryan Garcia promises to KO George Kambosos
Ryan Garcia: “It’s a shame been out the game for a year and my name still resonates much larger than all the lightweights combined don’t worry whatever route you choose just know you’d never catch up or beat me 👑
George Kambosos Jr: “You’re a good kid Ryan I like you but take a ticket, buddy, and try not to pull a heartstring again or injure yourself shadow boxing with your eyes closed you might run into a wall.,” said Kambosos Jr. on Twitter.
Ryan Garcia: “I will KO George Kambosos, that’s a promise. Say
that happens regardless. APRIL I will be 22-0. While everyone takes their shots, which is easy to do, the time is up. You had your chance to laugh. I’m coming for everything and there’s no stopping what’s meant to happen.”
