George Kambosos Jr. is a Greek-Australian professional boxer who is currently ranked as the number one lightweight boxer in the world by The Ring and TBRB. BoxRec currently ranks him as the third best lightweight boxer in the world.
Beginning his boxing career in 2013, George Kambosos has made his way up the ranks and is now set to fight American boxer Devin Haney in a rematch on Saturday 15th October 2022 (Sunday 16th October in Australia).
Much of the world’s – and undoubtedly Australia’s – attention will be on Kambosos at the weekend, so before the big rematch, it’s time you learned all about George Kambosos and his rise to boxing stardom.
In this George Kambosos story…
George Kambosos Jr Quick Facts
| Name: | George Kambosos Jr. |
| Age (DOB): | 29 (14 June 1993) |
| Nationality: | Greek-Australian |
| Height: | 5 feet 8 1/2 inches / 174cm |
| Weight: | 134.49lbs (last weigh-in) / Lightweight |
| Reach: | 69 inches / 173cm |
| Instagram: | @georgekambososjr – 535k followers |
| Net Worth: | $1.5 million (estimated) |
Who is George Kambosos Jr.?
George Kambosos was born in Sydney, New South Wales and initially started playing rugby league for the Gymea Gorillas at a young age. He was actually deemed to be overweight as a child, and so his father persuaded him to take up boxing classes to help shift some weight, when he was just 11 years old. He lost the weight, and soon enrolled with the Cronulla Sharks rugby league development squad.
But, having found an interest in boxing, he had to choose which sport he wanted to pursue. He ultimately settled on boxing and soon racked up 85 wins out of 100 fights, before turning professional.
Trainings
George spent more than 85% of the first quarter of 2023 working out and training hard for his first match of the year. He states that his drive for success is his children. Boxing to George is life in its entirety; hence, he must give his best shot at every given chance. In May 2023, George signed a multi-fight co-promotional agreement with powerhouse promoters, DiBella Entertainment and Ferocious Promotions. He worked out with his colleague, Roy Jones Junior, at Top Rank’s gym. George visited Vegas in anticipation of a fight in the city.
George Kambosos Jr. professional boxing career
Kambosos won his May 2013 debut professional fight against Jayson Mac Gura via a second round technical knockout. Three years later, Kambosos secured himself the WBA Oceania championship when he beat world number nine Brandon Ogilvie. On a continued run of success, George Kambosos defeated Qamil Balla and Krai Setthaphon in 2017, the latter securing him the WBA Oceania and IBF Pan Pacific lightweight championships.
Recognising his serious talent, Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao selected Kambosos to be his sparring partner in June 2017 and in 2019, Kambosos fought on the undercard of Pacquiao’s fight against Adrien Broner at The MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Kambosos won his fight against Rey Perez.
WATCH: George Kambosos Jr Prepares For His Fight Against Lee Selby
George Kambosos racked up yet more victories, against IBF lightweight champion Mickey Bey and IBF featherweight champion Lee Selby, in 2019 and 2020 respectively. Upon beating Selby, George Kambosos became the mandatory fighter for the IBF lightweight championship, which he eventually contested on November 27, 2021 against Teófimo López following complications that arose due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
George Kambosos won the fight via split decision, thus becoming the new unified lightweight world champion.
George Kambosos vs Teófimo López
George Kambosos challenged American boxer Teófimo López on November 27, 2021 at the Hulu Theatre at Madison Square Garden. The fight lasted the full 12 rounds and had to go to a judge’s decision.
Kambosos was named victorious, with two of the three judges scoring in favour of Kambosos 115-111 and 115-112. The third judge scored in favour of López 114-113.
George Kambosos vs Devin Haney
One of the biggest boxing matches of George Kambosos’ career took place on 5 June 2022 when he squared up against American boxer Devin Haney at the Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia. The winner would become the first undisputed lightweight champion of the four-belt era.
Kambosos actually weighed over the legal limit at his weigh-in, by just 0.36lbs. However, just an hour later he weighed-in again and came in under the limit at 134.49lbs. The fight went again, but Kambosos unfortunately lost by unanimous decision. But, due to a clause in the contract for the fight, an automatic rematch between the pair was agreed upon.
George vs. Maxie
May 2023 saw George announce his next fight with Maxie Hughes, the Lightweight world title holder, scheduled for July 22nd at Firelake Arena in Shawnee, Oklahoma. To George, it would be a worthy return to boxing after spending the major part of his break working out and training. Prior to his boxing match in July, George found it important to train with Emiliano Vargas, a future world champion, and former world champion, J Magdaleno. To succeed, he intends to learn from the past and the future of boxing. Successfully, George claimed his 6th title against Maxie Hughes, the Top 10 lightweight and IBO champion.
Next Match?
Despite holding the IBF, WBC, WBA, WBO, Ring magazine, and IBO belts, George is always thirsty for more, as he posted on his socials that his next belt target is the IBF lightweight world title. He is a calculative man as he spent the entire half of the year training and working out for his next match. His next match is scheduled to take place on May 12, 2024, for the IBF & IBO Lightweight title, which currently belongs to Vasiliy Lomachenko. According to George, this match is neither for the money nor the fame, as he notes that both himself and Vas have made money. Rather, it is about legacy. On Straight Talk with Mark Bouris, George’s schedule was train, sleep, eat. He hadn’t had an interview in months.
George Kambosos Jr Net Worth?
According to Essentially Sports, George Kambosos’ net worth stands at around US$1.5 million. However, Sporting News adds that he earned a guaranteed purse of $10 million for his first fight with Devin Haney.
George Kambosos Jr Record
George Kambosos Jr currently has an impressive fight record. He has currently competed in 21 fights, wining 20 and losing 1. George Kamboso’ full fight record is as follows:
- Fights: 21
- Wins: 20
- Wins by KO: 10
- Wins by Decision: 10
- Losses: 1
- Draws: 0
George Kambosos Wife & Family
George Kambosos Jr is engaged to Bec Pereira. Bec said yes to George’s proposal on 12th August 2022, and together, they have 3 children; daughter Evaliah and sons Leonidas and Santiago. Judging by an Instagram post on Bec’s Instagram, the couple have been together for over 7 years.
He spent a little break after his 6th championship match with his family at Disneyland and Hawaii. In October, the father of three had a family outdoor shoot for his mom’s birthday.
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