No Disputing: Devin Haney is the Lightweight King
*Devin “The Dream” Haney* (28-0,
15 KOs) became the undisputed lightweight champion of the world by
outclassing *George “**Ferocious” Kambosos Jr.* (20-1, 10 KOs) en route to
a 12-round unanimous decision in front of 41,129 fans on Sunday afternoon
at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia.
Haney unified his WBC championship with Kambosos’ WBA/WBO/IBF and Ring
Magazine lightweight titles. With two scores of 116-112 and one score of
118-110, he became the eighth fighter in history to capture all four major
championship titles in the four-belt era and the first to do so at 135
pounds.
Prior to the fight, Haney felt as if all the odds were stacked against him.
He came in as the challenger, fighting on enemy territory in a stadium full
of people wishing and hoping to see him lose. It even appeared as if his
father would not be able to be in his corner for the fight.
But, if Bill Haney’s eleventh-hour entry into Australia indicated anything,
it was that today belonged to Devin, and nothing would prevent his victory.
Indeed, though both men initiated the bout with firm, confident jabs, it
was Haney’s superior boxing skills that allowed him to find his rhythm by
the third and fourth rounds. Kambosos’ right hand seemed to be a factor
early, but Haney’s footwork, his ability to smother and clinch on the
inside, and even the way he would stop the former champion in his tracks
with a stiff jab, prevented Kambosos from landing any significant punches.
By the final rounds, Haney had nullified Kambosos’ offense to such a degree
that he could even take the gas off the pedal in the 12th round and cruise
to a decision win.
Haney said, “This is a dream come true. I was going through it without my
dad being here because I knew it was a big moment for us. We both dreamed
of this. Since we started out, we said we wanted to be the best. It would
have hurt me to accomplish this without him. I’m so thankful that we were
able to accomplish this together.
“I was comfortable. I was just sticking to the game plan. The game plan was
to go there and hit and not get hit, and I did that for the majority of the
fight. I took the last round off just because I knew I was comfortably
ahead, but I fought a good, smart fight.”
“I handicapped him of his best things. He wanted to land the overhand
right, and he wanted to land the big left hook. I handicapped him. I was
fighting both ways. When I would go to the left, I would fight his right
hand. When I would go to the right, I would fight his left hook. And he
couldn’t hit me with neither one of them.”
“I want to thank George Kambosos and all of Australia for coming out. Thank
you, George, for giving me the shot. All of these so-called champions would
not give me my shot. But George was a true champion, and he gave me my
shot. Thank you for this.
Kambosos said, “This was amazing for the sport. It was amazing for the
country. At the end of the day, I wanted to take the best and hardest
tests. I’m going to give him full respect after his victory today. Let him
have his time, and we’ll do it again. I have to implement a few things, but
I thought the fight was very close. I’m not going to wreck his moment. I’ll
let him have his moment. Last November, my moment was wrecked, so let him
have his moment, and I’ll see you again real soon.
“I landed the right hand a few times. I worked it to the body, but he had a
smart game plan. He grabbed and held a lot and did what he had to do to
win. That’s what it’s about. You do what you have to do to win, and today
they gave him the decision, but I’m sure it will change when we get it on
again. Respect to him, and respect to boxing. This is boxing. You fight the
best. Win, lose or draw. This is what it’s all about. F*** protecting
records. I’ve always been about fighting the best. I gave him a shot, and
we’ll do it again.”
*Moloney Crushes Palicte*
Two-time bantamweight title challenger* Jason “Mayhem” Moloney *(24-2, 19
KOs) delivered a spectacular third-round technical knockout victory against
rugged Filipino *Aston “Mighty” Palicte* (28-5-1, 23 KOs). Moloney,
inspired by the cheers of his countrymen, initiated the bout with a firm
jab in the first round before finding his rhythm and attacking the body in
the second. By the following round, Moloney had his target set and landed a
perfectly-timed one-two combo that sent Palicte to the canvas. Moloney then
ended matters with a quick flurry that forced the referee to put a halt to
the fight at 2:35 of the third. Moloney retained his WBC Silver
Bantamweight Title and added to his collection the vacant WBO International
belt.
*In other results:*
*BANTAMWEIGHT: *Andrew Moloney (24-2, 16 KOs) TKO 2 Alexander Espinoza
(21-4-2, 8 KOs). Time: 3:00.
*CRUISERWEIGHT*: David Nyika (3-0, 2 KOS) UD 5 Karim Maatalla (2-2, 2 KOs).
Scores: 49-46, 48-47 and 49-46
*HEAVYWEIGHT*: Hemi Ahio (19-0, 14 KOs) TKO 1 Christian Ndzie Tsoye (5-5-2,
4 KOs)
*HEAVYWEIGHT:* Lucas Browne (31-3, 27 KOs) KO 1 Junior Fa (19-2, 10 KOs).
Time: 1:58.
*JUNIOR MIDDLEWEIGHT*: Terry Nickolas (2-1-1, 2 KOS) DRAW 6 Lachlan
Higgins (7-4-2, 2 KOs). Scores: 58-56 Higgins, 57-57 2x.
*FLYWEIGHT:* Taylah Robertson (5-1, 1 KO) UD 5 Sarah Higginson (3-1-1, 1
KO). Scores: 50-45 3x
*WELTERWEIGHT*: Yoel Angeloni (1-0) UD 4 Ken Aitken (3-1, 1 KO). Scores:
39-37 2x and 40-36.
