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By: Sean Crose
Devin Haney travelled to Australia last June to remove native son George Kambosos’ lightweight titles from his possession. The fact Haney was able to do so in one sided fashion led people to wonder why the impressive American would have to travel to Australia to face Kambosos again a few months later. Requirements are requirements, however, and so Kambosos had to go back to Kambosos’ homeland to face him again. Haney was clearly the favorite heading into Saturday’s rematch, but Kambosos had stunned the world before when he bested Teofimo Lopez back in 2021. Many doubted he would be able to shock the world again, but boxing can be a sport that’s full of surprises. Haney-Kambosos 2 was scheduled for 12 rounds.
Kambosos started off aggressively in the first. Indeed, he was able to land well on the defending champion towards the end of the chapter. Haney was able to land well on his own in the second. With that being said, Kambosos was looking far sharper than he had in the first fight between the two men. Yet by the third, Haney began to shoot with speed and accuracy. The fourth saw Haney employing range, getting physical and pot shotting his man. Moving forward behind his jab in the fifth, Haney looked for opportunities to land his power shots.
By the sixth, things had fallen into a kind of pattern, with Kambosos trying to get inside while Haney kept his jab popping. Needless to say it was now Haney who had the clear edge. Kambosos was reduced to circling his man in the seventh. Meanwhile, Haney landed hard and at will. Kambosos, however, was able to rock Haney in the eighth. The ninth round was a war, with each man landing hard.
Haney banged away on a bloodied Kambosos in the tenth. In fact, it looked like the game Aussie might be ready to hit the mat. He survived the round, however, and even went on to land well on Haney in the eleventh. Kambosos was extremely aggressive in the twelfth, but it was too little too late. Suffice to say, Haney kept his titles, courtesy of an undisputed decision nod from the judges.
