On Saturday night, June 14th, at the Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden, the undefeated IBF super-lightweight world champion Richardson Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs) is set to defend his title against former unified world lightweight champion George Kambosos Jr.
(Credit: Geoffrey Knott/Matchroom Boxing)
Richardson Hitchins, the current champion and owner of the IBF super-lightweight strap, will be making his first title defense, while the challenger George Kambosos is attempting to become a two-division world champion. This matchup between Hitchins and Kambosos will be a classic battle of skill vs will.
George Kambosos isn’t recognized as one of the elite fighters, but his heart and determination, combined with his skill set, make him a very dangerous opponent. The Australian boxer is traveling to New York, where he’ll be placed in a similar scenario to the one he was involved in nearly four years ago.
In November 2021, George Kambosos was scheduled to participate in a match for the unified WBA, WBO, and IBF world titles. His opponent was an undefeated New York native who is a slick boxer-puncher. In the opening round of the contest, Teofimo Lopez was very aggressive in regards to consistently firing the right hand.
With 16 seconds left to go in the opening round, George Kambosos landed a well-timed overhand right that sent Lopez down to the canvas. As the match continued, Kambosos dictated the pace and landed the cleaner shots throughout the first half of the fight.
In the second half of the bout, Teofimo Lopez got into a rhythm as he was closing the gap on the scorecards. Early in the 10th round, Lopez dropped Kambosos when he connected with a chopping right hand.
Kambosos was able to bounce back in the championship rounds as he was very active in both the 11th and 12th rounds. After the contest, the scores would reveal that George Kambosos pulled off a massive upset by way of split decision.
With the victory, George Kambosos Jr. became the new unified lightweight champion, but unfortunately for Kambosos, he lost his belts seven months later when Devin Haney defeated him via unanimous decision.
Now, in the present day, the Sydney, Australia native George Kambosos Jr (22-3, 10 KOs) is scheduled to make his return to New York’s Hulu Theater at Madison Square Garden to recreate history and become a two-division world champion.
Back in 2021, Kambosos was facing an undefeated, highly skilled New York native who was a self-assured world champion. On Saturday night, June 14th, when Kambosos steps inside the ring to battle Richardson Hitchins, he’ll be facing an undefeated, highly skilled New York native who is a self-assured world champion.
When George Kambosos faced Teofimo Lopez back in 2021, he was a considerable underdog. On Saturday night, when George Kambosos walks down the aisle to battle Richardson Hitchins, he will enter the squared circle as the substantial underdog.
The setting is the same, and the details of the matchup are eerily similar. The question is, will George Kambosos be able to shock the world once again and make history repeat itself?
Last Updated on 06/11/2025
