On the undercard of Pacquiao vs. Broner, lightweight George Kambosos Jr. hopes to steal the spotlight away from the night’s main event.
Manny Pacquiao vs. Adrien Broner is the main event on Showtime’s Jan. 19 pay-per-view boxing card. There are several other marquee matchups on tap, but there might be a future star present that’s sandwiched in the middle of the action. George Kambosos Jr. (15-0, 9 KOs) is traveling up lightweight rankings with a bullet, and he’s a name that deserves your attention.
Kambosos is a 25-year-old lightweight who’s undefeated and already has five years of professional experience in his back pocket. You may not have heard of him yet, but that’s because he’s from Australia and has only fought outside of his home country on two occasions. His bout against Rey Perez (24-10, 8 KOs) on the Pacquiao vs. Broner undercard will be his third.
There are lots of reasons to admire Kambosos as an upcoming prospect. He’s an action fighter with lightning fast hands. He likes to box and knock opponents out. His style is fluid which makes him a bit of chameleon. The one thing you can always expect out of his fights is that you will be satisfied with the show.
“I’m an entertaining machine,” Kambosos told FanSided. “I’m super fast. I’m one of the fastest fighters in the world. I’m very, very explosive. I can hit you with one shot and put you to sleep, and I can box you. I can box incredibly.”
After accumulating a perfect 15-0 record, Boxrec.com has Kambosos rated as the 24th best lightweight in the world. He has high hopes for 2019 and thinks that he will be wearing one of the major title belts by year’s end.
“I want to have four fights this year,” said Kambosos. “I want to win fights and hopefully a world title. In my mind, I’m ready for a world title right now. Lou Dibella has already stated that we will fight for a world title in 2019. Manny Pacquiao is very excited about my career and also stated, ‘you’re ready for a world title right now.’ It’s just a matter of time.”
That’s high praise coming from Manny Pacquiao, but Kambosos has earned his respect the hard way. He started sparring Pacquiao in preparation for his 2017 bout with Jeff Horn. Kambosos has worked with Pacquiao ever since. The experience of working with Pacquiao has undoubtedly made Kambosos a better boxer.
“It’s been beneficial for my career” stated Kambosos. “This is my third camp with him. Just on that alone, getting the call up again and again and having me as his main sparring partner, shows how much trust he puts in myself to prepare for his world title fight.
“Whatever comes across my path to the world title, I’ll be 100 percent ready because you can’t get better than Manny Pacquiao.”
What’s most impressive about Kambosos’ work with Pacquiao is that he’s a lightweight holding his own against one of the best welterweights in the world. Pacquiao isn’t the same fighter he was five years ago, but he’s still one of the best in the world.
“There’s no one faster that I’ve ever sparred or fought that moves faster than Pacquiao even at age 40,” explained Kambosos. “He’s still extremely fast. He still moves very, very well, and he still has dangerous power in both hands.”
One bout that Kambosos is keeping his eye on is the Feb. 2 matchup between Richard Commey (27-2, 24 KOs) and Isa Chaniev (13-1, 6 KOs) for the vacant IBF lightweight title. He wants the winner of this fight with a passion.
“There’s already been past talk about me and (Isa) Chaniev fighting,” revealed Kambosos. “I would love to have that fight. If he wins a belt, if Richard Commey wins the title, which I think he’s the favorite, I think he will get that title. I will have to fight him next. If he wants to defend it against me straightway, let’s do it. I’ll do it wherever he wants to do it.”
The other fighter on Kambosos’ radar is Anthony Crolla.
“Bring them all on,” exclaimed Kambosos. “These are the guys you need to fight if you want to continue to prove yourself. I’ve had my eyes for a long time on Anthony Crolla. I love that fight. I would love to dance with him in his backyard.”
What comes across when talking to Kambosos are his confidence and determination. He’s very sure of himself. He doesn’t fear any man in his division. It’s like he knows something that the rest of us don’t, as if he’s sure of his championship fate.
During his 2017 training camp with Pacquiao, Kambosos became a father. His daughter gives him added motivation.
“It’s [fatherhood] made me even hungrier,” says Kambosos. “The outlook I have now is that everything is for her. Everything I’m doing is to give her a better life. The moment I jump in that ring, whatever it takes to give her a better life. I’m willing to go through hell and back to win that world title, and I will do it for my family.”
You can catch Kambosos on the undercard of Pacquiao vs. Broner on Saturday, Jan. 19. Don’t be surprised if he turns in the most electric performance of the night.