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| Date | June 5, 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | Docklands Stadium, Melbourne, Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Title(s) on the line | WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring lightweight titles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tale of the tape | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Result | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Haney wins via 12-round unanimous decision (116-112, 116-112, 118-110) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
George Kambosos Jr vs Devin Haney, billed as Undisputed, was a lightweight unification professional boxing match contested between WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and The Ring champion, George Kambosos Jr, and WBC champion, Devin Haney. The bout took place on 5 June 2022, at Docklands Stadium in Melbourne, Australia. Haney defeated Kambosos via unanimous decision to become the first undisputed lightweight champion since Pernell Whitaker in 1990, and the first in the four-belt era.
Background
After defeating Vasiliy Lomachenko in October 2020, Teófimo López claimed to have become the undisputed champion in the lightweight division. However, many boxing purists rejected López's claim, believing Devin Haney had the legitimate WBC lightweight title, meaning that there was still not an undisputed lightweight champion. Haney called out López for a bout to end the debate, which did not materialise. Haney was set to be ordered to face fellow American lightweight Ryan Garcia, which Garcia dismissed, instead advocating for a bout with Gervonta Davis. Haney then agreed to a title defence against Jorge Linares, winning by unanimous decision.
Meanwhile, López was forced to a mandatory defence against Australian George Kambosos Jr, which was originally set for 5 June in Miami, Florida, before being moved to 19 June. López then tested positive for COVID-19, and after multiple setbacks, the fight was finally set for 27 November in New York City, New York. In one of the biggest upsets of 2021, Kambosos Jr defeated López via split decision, winning the unified lightweight titles in the process.
On 15 October, Ryan Garcia was forced to pull out of his bout with Joseph Diaz, and Devin Haney agreed to step in and face Diaz on 5 December in Las Vegas, Nevada, with Haney winning by unanimous decision. Haney then called out Kambosos Jr, who had defeated López the week before, to determine an undisputed lightweight champion. However, there was another man in the lightweight division looking for Kambosos Jr's titles: Vasiliy Lomachenko, who defeated Richard Commey on 11 December in New York. A potential bout with Lomachenko seemed more likely for Kambosos Jr, as a two-fight deal was agreed without any problems on 15 February 2022. However, on 24 February, Russia invaded Lomachenko's country of Ukraine, with Lomachenko heading over to Ukraine in order to defend his country, as well as unified heavyweight champion and fellow Ukrainian, Oleksandr Usyk. On 20 March, Lomachenko was given permission to leave Ukraine in order to start training for a potential bout with Kambosos Jr. However, Lomachenko declined, opting to stay and fight for his country. This resulted in Kambosos Jr–Haney talks advancing, and on 27 March, the pair struck a deal, which included Haney signing a two-fight deal with Top Rank and Lou DiBella to fight exclusively on ESPN platforms. The deal includes a rematch clause if Haney wins, with the rematch also taking place in Australia. Even if Haney lost, his next bout afterward would be co-promoted by Top Rank and DiBella.
Fight card
| Weight Class | vs | Method | Round | Time | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lightweight |  Devin Haney (c)
|
def. |  George Kambosos Jr. (c)
|
UD | 12 | ||
| Bantamweight | Jason Moloney
|
def. |  Aston Palicte
|
TKO | 3 (10) | 2:35 | |
| Heavyweight | Lucas Browne
|
def. |  Junior Fa
|
TKO | 1 (10) | 1:58 | |
| Heavyweight | Hemi Ahio
|
def. | Christian Ndzie Tsoye
|
RTD | 1 (8) | ||
| Cruiserweight | David Nyika
|
def. | Karim Maatalla
|
UD | 5 | ||
| Super flyweight | Andrew Moloney
|
def. |  Alexander Espinoza
|
RTD | 2 (8) | 3:00 | |
| Junior Middleweight | Amari Jones
|
def. | Ankush Hooda
|
TKO | 2 (6) | ||
| Junior Middleweight | Terry Nickolas
|
vs | Lachlan Higgins
|
MD | 6 | ||
| Junior Middleweight | Isaias Sette
|
vs | Luke Gersbeck
|
MD | 4 | ||
| Junior Lightweight | Pom Thanawut Phetkum
|
def. | Hussein Fayad
|
UD | 4 | ||
| Super flyweight | Taylah Robertson
|
def. | Sarah Higginson
|
UD | 5 | ||
| Welterweight |  Yoel Angeloni
|
def. | Ken Aitken
|
UD | 4 |
^Note 1 For WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring lightweight titles
^Note 2 For WBC Silver bantamweight, WBO International bantamweight title
^Note 3 For WBA Oceania heavyweight title
See also
References
- "Kambosos-Haney official for June in Melbourne". ESPN.com. 2022-03-27. Archived from the original on 2022-04-07. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
- Foster, Elliot (27 August 2022). "Devin Haney Dumps Ring Magazine Belt". Boxing Social. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
- "Devin Haney puts on a masterclass on George Kambosos Jr. to become undisputed lightweight champion". DAZN. 5 June 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
- "Explained: All the belts, titles on line and why this fight means so much in boxing's 'fractured' world". Fox Sports. 2 June 2022. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
- "Ryan Garcia rejects Devin Haney as Gervonta Davis clash opens up". World Boxing News. 2021-01-07. Archived from the original on 2021-01-07. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
- Compton, Tim (2022-02-15). "Vasiliy Lomachenko agrees to deal for George Kambosos Jr fight on June 5th in Australia". www.boxing247.com. Archived from the original on 2022-02-19. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
- "Vasiliy Lomachenko, Oleksandr Usyk among Ukrainian fighters returning home amid Russian invasion". www.sportingnews.com. 28 February 2022. Archived from the original on 2022-04-06. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
- "Lomachenko staying in Ukraine, out vs. Kambosos". ESPN.com. 2022-03-21. Archived from the original on 2022-04-11. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
- "Kambosos-Haney official for June in Melbourne". ESPN.com. 2022-03-27. Archived from the original on 2022-04-07. Retrieved 2022-04-12.