Latest news with #GeorgeKambosos
The Independent
12 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Independent
CARVILL'S NOTES: Trash Talk, a Circus Tent, and a Another Golden Generation?
A word of warning: I tend to use stars (*) to replace profanity when I write. Some paragraphs of this particular column will, as a result, resemble the pages of an astronomy textbook. Of all the gruesome, unnecessary things that happen when you spend your life writing and covering boxing – the late nights, bad arena food, the blood-infused sweat or spittle drop that occasionally flies out of the ring to land on your notes – perhaps the most-tiresome aspect of it all is the name-calling and trash-talking that seemingly precedes every major contest. Catch all the latest boxing action on DAZN Trash talking has been part of boxing for decades and when it is not exasperating, it can be genuinely hurtful. By 1975, four years into their rivalry, Muhammad Ali had broken the soul of Joe Frazier apart by calling him a 'gorilla' and an 'Uncle Tom'. Frazier, for his part, never got past it. It is apparently not enough that two men will fight; they should also, for the purposes of putting bums on seats or drawing eyeballs to a screen, hate each other. I was reminded of that last week when reading about the pre-fight press conference (along with a pre-fight fight) between Richardson Hitchins and George Kambosos Jr. The pair had been sparring verbally for some days. On top of the Empire State Building during a face off and a photo opportunity, Kambosos pointed at Hitchins and said, 'Your breath stinks, bro. Your breath stinks. Your breath stinks.' 'I can't talk with this guy. This guy's breath stinks,' Kambosos said a few moments later. A few seconds after that, Kambosos pointed to his crotch and, referring to a proposed $50,000 bet, said, 'You can shake on that, too.' Hitchins was not one to be outdone. After stating that he had never been down in boxing, he said, 'You ****ing pussy. You ****ing *****. I'm going to show that. I'm going to show you, *****.' It was much the same last month when Darren Till called out Carl Froch following the former's win over Darren Stewart. Responding to repeated barbs, Froch said of Till's knockout by Masvidal: 'He's been absolutely ****ing ironed out by Jorge Masvidal with half a punch that's clipped him on the chin.' Froch went on, fantasising what would happen if the pair were to meet. 'It would be an absolute ****ing wipeout, game over,' he said. 'The problem is for Darren Till is that I've been retired for eleven years. I'm not interested. I don't want to fight any more. Don't call my name out to give yourself credence. Listen, if the money was there and it was big enough, I'd certainly take a look at it. But for now, Darren, one—you'd get ****ing demolished, and two—there's no real bunce in it. Just pipe down about the Cobra's name.' Till went on to offer his reply, also through Twitter. He wrote, 'Can't wait to snap that fat big ****ing disgusting nose soon.' It is now understood that fight terms for Froch-Till will soon be finalised, although they stipulate that any bout will take place behind the bins, but not the one by where the teachers' room is. There will also be a rematch clause, but one that states that the loser gets to have his dad beat up the other one's dad. Fighters engage in trash talk because it is not rocket science that animosity sells fights. But it is also lazy to throw cheap venom at your opponent. Ultimately, it cheapens everybody. But does it not get tiresome after a while? How much can the public be expected to believe that so many people hate each other so much? That is the other thing that such talk is: cheap and unbelievable. Because what will happen is that the fighters will trash talk, the fight will take place, and afterwards they will stand next to each other, admit that each always admired the other, and that the bad blood was merely there to hype a fight. It will all be as tiresome and predictable as a Marvel movie. So here is an idea – the next time a fight looms into action, the pleasantries should not be saved for after, but for before. The fighters should be nice to each other before the bell rings, talking about how much they respect the other's skills and their will to win. Then they should fight. And, only after that, should they then move to hate each other. If it only does one thing, it will set up the rematch quite nicely. And on that note: A few weekends ago, I was in Hamburg to commentate the European heavyweight championship between Labinot Xhoxhaj and Mourad Aliev. My commentary gigs are fun and I do it for my love of the sport, saying, 'Hey, I'm just glad to be part of the circus.' Except that the match, which was shown on DAZN, was literally held within a circus tent. Next time, I'm going to wish I was part of a party on a beach somewhere, sipping a non-alcoholic cocktail. The UK boxer James Cook died recently, aged 66. By all accounts, he was not just a good fighter, but also the most decent of men. Cook, 25-10 (14), held the British and European super-middleweight titles in a career that went from 1982 to 1994. He defeated along the way the likes of Michael Watson, Errol Christie, and Mark Kaylor. He also took on Herol Graham and Graciano Rocchigiani. After his retirement from the ring, Cook turned his ship towards working with his local community in Hackney, London, and was eventually awarded an MBE in 2007 for these services. His memory, certainly, will be a blessing to all who knew him. As the current generation of heavyweight champions and contenders – Usyk, Fury, Dubois, Wilder, Whyte – gets older, the next few years will see more and more of them retire, with another generation – Dubois, Wardley, Itauma, Torres, Hrgovic, Kabayel – beginning to come through. Does this mean that we could end up with not one golden generation of heavyweights, but two successive ones? Interesting. Watch the very best boxing with a DAZN subscription DAZN is the home of combat sports, broadcasting over 185 fights a year from the world's best promoters, including Matchroom, Queensberry, Golden Boy, Misfits, PFL, BKFC, GLORY and more. An Annual Saver subscription is a one-off cost of £119.99 / $224.99 (for 12 months access), that's just 64p / $1.21 per fight. There is also a Monthly Flex Pass option (cancel any time) at £24.99 / $29.99 per month. A subscription includes weekly magazine shows, comprehensive fight library, exclusive interviews, behind-the-scenes documentaries, and podcasts and vodcasts.
BBC News
5 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Hitchins calls out Haney after title defence
Richardson Hitchins called out Devin Haney after claiming a dominant win over George Kambosos Jr to retain his IBF light-welterweight 27-year-old headlined a show in his hometown New York for the first time and stopped Kambosos with a left hook to the body in the eighth was making his first defence of the title he earned by beating Liam Paro in dominated throughout at The Theater at Madison Square Garden, landing a far greater number of blows than Kambosos, a former world champion at being floored in the eighth round, the Australian rose to his feet before the count of 10 but was still grimacing in pain and was unable to meant Hitchins extended his unbeaten record to 20-0, including eight knockouts."I've been telling the boxing world I was coming and they should have listened," he said."I told his [Kambosos'] dad: 'If you love your son, you'll stop the fight.' He was tough, a true competitor, but I was just the better man tonight."Kambosos shocked Teofimo Lopez at the same venue in 2021 to become the unified lightweight the 32-year-old then lost back-to-back fights to Haney and has now lost four of his past six fights for a 22-4 added: "I knew I had to go to some unsafe places to get some good shots off. I put myself in harm's way."He caught me with a couple of good shots, but they didn't hurt me, so I just went for the [finish]."WBO champion Lopez entered the ring after the fight but Hitchins called out the unbeaten Haney, who moved up to welterweight to beat Jose Ramirez last later said on X:, external "We could get it at 147 (welterweight)."Brighton fighter Adam Maca made his professional debut on the undercard and beat Rafael Castillo via a second-round knockout.
Forbes
6 days ago
- Sport
- Forbes
Richardson Hitchins Vs. George Kambosos Jr. Results & Fight Card Results
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 14: Richardson Hitchins, silver shorts, fights George Kambosos Jr. of ... More Australia, blue shorts, during a IBF world junior welterweight title fight at The Theater at Madison Square Garden on June 14, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by) Richardson Hitchins beat the brakes off George Kambosos Jr. on Saturday night at the Hulu Theater in Madison Square Garden. In the process, the 27-year-old Hitchins successfully defended his IBF junior welterweight title handing Kambosos another crushing loss against the top fighters in the weight region. This fight was never really close as Hitchins prevailed via eighth-round TKO punctuated a spectacular display of boxing. 'This was an almost perfect performance by Richardson Hitchins in this title defense against George Kambosos Jr,' said Dennis Allen of CompuBox. 'Hitchins landed 205 of 398, 52% in total punches, 118 of 233, 51% in jabs and 87 of 165, 53% in power punches. He put Kambosos down with a body shot in the final round and the referee waved it off at the 2:33 mark.' The win pushed Hitchins' record to a perfect with 20-0 and 8 KOs. Hitchins was superior in his mastery of distance, he had faster hands and with the TKO, Hitchins showed the ability to stop an opponent which has been one of the biggest questions around his career. Kambosos has now been stopped in two of his last three fights and no longer appears to be the kind of fighter capable of competing with the upper-echelon fighters at 135 or 140 pounds. It's tough to imagine him getting a big fight the next time out. He's only 32 years old, but he's clearly seen better days in his career. As for Hitchins, he has long wanted to face and defeat Kambosos before setting up a unification fight with WBO champion Teofimo Lopez. Hitchins doubled down on that concept with Lopez joining him in the ring following the stoppage win. 'A few years ago, I was watching Teofimo Lopez and George Kambosos Jr. go to war, and I was sitting on those stairs and I said when I get my opportunity, I'm going to make the best of it," Hitchins said after the fight. "With the help of Eddie Hearn and Keith Connelly, they changed my life in two years. In terms of the fight itself, I've been telling the boxing world that I'm the truth. If you don't know Richardson Hitchins, now you know. I've been telling the boxing world I've been coming. They should have listened and now I'm here.' 'George is a warrior but that's what you need if your Richardson, come out, step on the gas and dominate," said Matchroom's Eddie Hearn. Sometimes he would let that just coast for 12 rounds but he came out and dominated with a great performance. That is the statement he needed to mix with these guys. Great atmosphere, great performance from a great young American champion. Time for him to get the big fights.' A fight with Lopez could theoretically happen as soon as October. Lopez is coming off a unanimous decision win over Arnold Barboza last month, so the two men are on the same schedule. It's unclear who would promote the fight as Lopez's current alliances are unclear on that front. In any case, unification fights are good for the sport, so I hope to see it come to fruition.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Hitchins dismantles Kambosos inside eight to retain 140lb title at Garden
Richardson Hitchins delivered a career-best performance on Saturday night at the Theater at Madison Square Garden, stopping George Kambosos Jr with a withering body shot in the eighth round to retain the IBF's version of the light welterweight championship. In his first defense of the 140lb belt, and his first time headlining a card in his hometown, Hitchins (20-0, 8 KOs) controlled every round before putting Kambosos down with a sharp left hook to the midsection. The Australian rose to his feet before the count of 10, but referee Michael Griffin waved off the fight as Kambosos visibly grimaced in pain, unable to continue. Advertisement 'I've been telling the boxing world I was coming and they should have listened,' Hitchins said afterwards. 'I told his dad, if you love your son, you'll stop the fight. He was tough, a true competitor, but I was just the better man tonight.' The 26-year-old Hitchins had pledged a punishing performance after a spicy build-up that included cancelled face-offs, bold predictions and tension between camps. After dancing into the ring to a roaring crowd, the native of Brooklyn's Crown Heights neighborhood dominated from the outset and won every minute of every round up until the stoppage. 'I knew I had to go to some unsafe places to get some good shots off,' Hitchins said. 'I put myself in harm's way, but I knew I had good defense. He caught me with a couple of good shots, but they didn't hurt me. So I just went for the kill.' The Compubox punch statistics lent a quantitative context to the one-way traffic. Hitchins connected with a whopping 205 of 398 punches (52%), while Kambosos landed only 57 of 384 shots (15%). Advertisement For Kambosos (22-4, 10 KOs), it was a humbling defeat and perhaps the end of a remarkable run. The 32-year-old had been bidding to join Jeff Fenech and Bob Fitzsimmons on the short list of multi-division world champions from Australia. Instead, he suffered his fourth loss in six outings. 'Man, I really believed in myself, but just didn't have the timing,' Kambosos said. 'He was a little bit too good for me tonight. He hit me with a beautiful body shot. I still got up before 10, but the ref's got to do his job.' Having registered shock waves through the sport with his upset win over Teófimo López in 2021 in this same room, Kambosos has since endured punishing losses to Devin Haney (twice), Vasiliy Lomachenko and now Hitchins. Saturday's result not only ended his hopes of a second world title, but may have signaled the final chapter of his career. 'Right now I'm going to go coach my son's footie team,' Kambosos said. Kambosos had shocked the boxing world with his upset win over Teófimo López in this same room in 2021. But since then, the Australian has suffered punishing defeats to Devin Haney (twice), Vasiliy Lomachenko, and now Hitchins. Saturday's result not only ended his hopes of a second world title, but may have signaled the final chapter of his career. Advertisement Hitchins, meanwhile, continues his promising ascent at 140lb. After outpointing Australia's Liam Paro of the IBF strap in December, he's now scored a second straight win over a world-class foe and will head into a likely title unification fight as a promotional free agent. One possible opponent is Lopez, who took in Saturday's card from ringside before climbing through the ropes to joing the post-fight patter. But Hitchins appeared to make his preference clear when he closed his interview with an expletive-laden rant calling out Haney, the former unified lightweight champion who has since moved up to the 140lb division.
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Hitchins dismantles Kambosos inside eight to retain 140lb title at Garden
Richardson Hitchins delivered a career-best performance on Saturday night at the Theater at Madison Square Garden, stopping George Kambosos Jr with a withering body shot in the eighth round to retain the IBF's version of the light welterweight championship. In his first defense of the 140lb belt, and his first time headlining a card in his hometown, Hitchins (20-0, 8 KOs) controlled every round before putting Kambosos down with a sharp left hook to the midsection. The Australian rose to his feet before the count of 10, but referee Michael Griffin waved off the fight as Kambosos visibly grimaced in pain, unable to continue. 'I've been telling the boxing world I was coming and they should have listened,' Hitchins said afterwards. 'I told his dad, if you love your son, you'll stop the fight. He was tough, a true competitor, but I was just the better man tonight.' The 26-year-old Hitchins had pledged a punishing performance after a spicy build-up that included cancelled face-offs, bold predictions and tension between camps. After dancing into the ring to a roaring crowd, the native of Brooklyn's Crown Heights neighborhood dominated from the outset and won every minute of every round up until the stoppage. 'I knew I had to go to some unsafe places to get some good shots off,' Hitchins said. 'I put myself in harm's way, but I knew I had good defense. He caught me with a couple of good shots, but they didn't hurt me. So I just went for the kill.' The Compubox punch statistics lent a quantitative context to the one-way traffic. Hitchins connected with a whopping 205 of 398 punches (52%), while Kambosos landed only 57 of 384 shots (15%). For Kambosos (22-4, 10 KOs), it was a humbling defeat and perhaps the end of a remarkable run. The 32-year-old had been bidding to join Jeff Fenech and Bob Fitzsimmons on the short list of multi-division world champions from Australia. Instead, he suffered his fourth loss in six outings. 'Man, I really believed in myself, but just didn't have the timing,' Kambosos said. 'He was a little bit too good for me tonight. He hit me with a beautiful body shot. I still got up before 10, but the ref's got to do his job.' Having registered shock waves through the sport with his upset win over Teófimo López in 2021 in this same room, Kambosos has since endured punishing losses to Devin Haney (twice), Vasiliy Lomachenko and now Hitchins. Saturday's result not only ended his hopes of a second world title, but may have signaled the final chapter of his career. 'Right now I'm going to go coach my son's footie team,' Kambosos said. Kambosos had shocked the boxing world with his upset win over Teófimo López in this same room in 2021. But since then, the Australian has suffered punishing defeats to Devin Haney (twice), Vasiliy Lomachenko, and now Hitchins. Saturday's result not only ended his hopes of a second world title, but may have signaled the final chapter of his career. Hitchins, meanwhile, continues his promising ascent at 140lb. After outpointing Australia's Liam Paro of the IBF strap in December, he's now scored a second straight win over a world-class foe and will head into a likely title unification fight as a promotional free agent. One possible opponent is Lopez, who took in Saturday's card from ringside before climbing through the ropes to joing the post-fight patter. But Hitchins appeared to make his preference clear when he closed his interview with an expletive-laden rant calling out Haney, the former unified lightweight champion who has since moved up to the 140lb division.
