Devin Haney couldn’t have been much more dominating than he was in his first fight with George Kambosos Jr.
Haney outclassed the then-undisputed lightweight champion from beginning to end on June 6 in Melbourne, ultimately winning a one-sided decision and all four major 135-pound titles. In the process, he confirmed his place among the best boxers in the world.
The new champion now has to do it again because of a rematch clause in the contract for the first fight: He’ll face Kambosos a second time on Saturday (Sunday in Australia) in the same town (ESPN, ESPN+).
Haney (28-0, 15 KOs) doesn’t expect to fight the same Kambosos (20-1, 10 KOs). That’s also true of him.
“We’ve definitely made some adjustments, learned from the first fight,” Haney said. “Obviously, we all know he’s going to come with a different game plan. The same things that worked in the first fight may not work as good in the second fight, so we’re preparing for it all. …
“We just have to see how the fight plays out. We’re prepared to win by any means necessary, so that’s our main focus … winning. If a knockout comes, then it comes, but my main focus is winning.”
Kambosos had no answers for the unusual speed and skill set of Haney, who boxed brilliantly behind his jab to dominate round after round. Kambosos barely touched him, which is why Boxing Junkie scored it 119-109 in his favor, 11 rounds to one.
One judge, Pawel Kardyni, saw it the same way. His score was 118-110. However, the other two, Zoltan Enyedi and Benoit Roussel, handed in scores of 116-112. How they found four rounds to give Kambosos is anyone’s guess.
Haney was among those taken aback when the results were announced.
“It definitely surprised me,” Haney told Yahoo! Sports. “I mean, it was hard for me to give him a second of the fight, so him getting four rounds was surprising. But at the end of the day, that fight is over with and we move forward.”
Haney also was caught off guard by some of Kambosos’ post-fight comments.
The Aussie initially gave Haney credit for his convincing victory but more recently had some complaints. For example, he said his efforts were hampered by incessant holding on Haney’s part.
“He’s making up every excuse in the book,” Haney said. “He said he wasn’t going to, but now they’re saying I was holding, it was this, it was that. Whatever you want to say, he can keep saying it. The talk doesn’t matter.
“I’m going to go in there and do what I’m going to do regardless. No matter what referee is in there, no matter where the fight is at, it doesn’t matter.”
That’s how the oddsmakers feel, too. Haney is about an 8-1 favorite.
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