Why a win over Vasiliy Lomachenko is so important to George Kambosos

PERTH, Australia — When George Kambosos Jr. steps into the ring (Saturday at 10 p.m. ET in the U.S, ESPN/ESPN+) to face Ukrainian star Vasiliy Lomachenko, his focus won’t be on capturing the vacant IBF lightweight title that’s up for grabs. Nor will it be about the monster pay day from what he dubs “Australia’s greatest ever fight.” Instead, Kambosos is focusing on one thing and one thing only: his legacy.

How he is perceived as a fighter, both now and once he has hung up the gloves, is something Kambosos (21-2, 10 KOs) has been fixated on ever since this megafight with Lomachenko (17-3, 11 KOs) was officially announced in January. Each media appearance in the buildup has offered Kambosos an opportunity to elaborate on how significant a win over the two-time Olympic gold medalist and three-division champion would be, and how it would affect the mark he leaves on the sport.

“For me, this is about legacy. Nothing else,” a defiant Kambosos said earlier in the year. “He has made money, I have made money. He has won belts, I have won belts. I’ve been in the big fights [and] fought the best. I’ve won the big fights, lost the big fights. But this here is legacy; destiny for both guys. We don’t need to go overboard or create any storylines or headlines. This is two warriors coming together to fight.”

The legacy Kambosos is referring to, and seeking, is a place in the coveted International Boxing Hall of Fame, an honour that’s been bestowed on only five Australians — Jeff Fenech, Kostya Tszyu, Peter Jackson, Young Griffo and Les Darcy.

Kambosos and his camp are convinced a win over pound-for-pound great Lomachenko, albeit at 36 years of age and firmly in the twilight of his career, will bolster his résumé to a point where his eventual entry into the exclusive fight club will become undeniable.

“This fight cements me in the Hall of Fame, I truly believe it. They can’t deny that,” said Kambosos. “What I have been able to achieve, the fighters I’ve been able to fight, the events I’ve been able to bring to Australia … how can they deny Kambosos’ résumé?”

The problem with legacy is that it doesn’t solely trend in the positive direction. And while flowers will rightly be thrown at the feet of Kambosos if he’s able to upset Lomachenko, a loss would only feed the one-fight-wonder narrative many have formed over what’s been a rather underwhelming past 24 months.

Kambosos shot to fame in November 2021 when he engineered not only ESPN’s 2021 Upset of the Year, but one of boxing’s biggest boilovers of the 21st century. The unheralded Sydney native travelled to New York and handed unified American star Teofimo Lopez his first — and still only — loss, by way of split decision. It was a fight that won Kambosos a swag of lightweight championship belts and provided a launchpad for his international boxing career.

But 2½ years on, that night is beginning to appear more like an anomaly than the standard.

Kambosos lost the belts six months later following a one-sided loss — scored 116-112, 116-112, 118-110 — to Devin Haney in Melbourne. His rematch with the unbeaten American four months later was even more lopsided, Haney once again humiliating the former titlist in Australia, 119-109, 118-110, 118-110.

Kambosos would make his return to the ring in mid-2023 when he faced Maxi Hughes, a bout that ended in highly controversial fashion. The Englishman produced a career-best performance, outlanded Kambosos and left him bloody and bruised, yet it was the Australian getting the nod 114-114, 117-111, 115-113, as a chorus of boos rung out around Firelake Arena in Oklahoma.

Controversy aside, the win breathed life back into Kambosos’ career. Cue Lomachenko.

Kambosos and Lomachenko, a former longtime unified lightweight champion, had been slated to fight for undisputed honours in the Australian summer of 2022. However, those plans were scuppered when Lomachenko opted to return to his family during the war in Ukraine, opening the door for Haney to step in and fight Kambosos. While the bout between Lomachenko and Kambosos did not go ahead, it remained firmly on the boxing radar, ultimately being agreed upon as the headline act of a blockbuster bill in Perth.

The résumés of Kambosos and Lomachenko might be poles apart, but the two fighters do share one commonality: losses to Haney. But unlike Kambosos, who was totally outclassed on two occasions, many felt Lomachenko did enough to get the judges’ nod when he and Haney fought in May last year. It was the last time we saw Lomachenko in the ring, and it was a performance that certainly proved he still has plenty left in the tank.

For that reason, plus the increasing likelihood of a Lomachenko-Shakur Stevenson megafight if the Ukrainian is able to salute, Kambosos has been installed by bookmakers as a 7-1 underdog per ESPN BET. And just as it was when Kambosos battled Lopez at Madison Square Garden in 2021, few are making a case the Australian can pull the upset. He’s not bothered by it, though. In fact, Kambosos is relishing his underdog status and has plans to retire his highly credentialed opponent.

“When I beat Lomachenko, there’ll be no more road for him to go,” said Kambosos at Thursday afternoon’s official news conference in Perth, one which featured a three-minute stare-down between the two fighters. “This is retirement for him, I truly believe it.

“The way I’m sparring, the way I’m firing on every engine. The speed that I have … he’s never seen this kind of speed and explosive power. The will, the heart I have, the desire to win this fight. I want this bad. I’ve prepared extremely hard for this fight. I’ve left no stone unturned.”

Kambosos knows full well that a high-profile fight against Lomachenko provides an opportunity to regenerate his boxing career and reestablish himself as one of the division’s top fighters. But a third loss in four fights would be a career hammer blow, one that would have him plummeting down the lightweight rankings and almost certainly waving goodbye to any future world title battles.

“[After this fight] only one of us will continue with their career,” said Kambosos. “One of us will go not where we want to go. So, I’m very motivated. I know he’s motivated.”