Vasiliy Lomachenko, George Kambosos make weight, engage in long preview ahead of IBF Title Fight
Vasiliy Lomachenko and George Kambosos Jr. they enjoyed watching again for a long time before they met in the ring.
The former title contenders both weighed in ahead of their vacant IBF lightweight bout. Ukraine's Lomachenko came late to the official pre-fight weigh-in, but came in at 134.95 kilograms. Kambosos was fit and lean at 134 ¼ pounds. The pair spent more than five minutes on stage before being forcibly separated from their respective groups.
Their scheduled twelve round ESPN tripleheader this Saturday from the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia.
Lomachenko (17-3, 11 knockouts) ends 51 months without a title bid. He dropped a close decision to then-undefeated RING/undisputed champion Devin Haney (31-1, 15 KOs) last May 20 in Las Vegas.
Haney relinquished his title after the fight and is now campaigning at 140, where he is The Ring's No. 1 contender. 1.
Lomachenko, No. 1 at 135, previously held the WBA, WBC and WBO lightweight titles and also reigned at 126 and 130. The two-time Olympic Gold medalist is now aiming for a fourth pro title.
Sydney's Kambosos (21-2. 10 KOs), ranked No. 7 at 135, is hoping to challenge for his second title.
An upset split decision win over then-undefeated Teofimo Lopez saw Kambosos claim The Ring title in their old Nov. 2021. He also won the WBA, IBF, WBO and WBC “Franchise” titles that night. He was defeated by Haney in their unification fight in June 2022, the first of their two fights in Melbourne. Kambosos also lost its October 2022 rerun.
One fight followed, a twelve-round decision over England's Maxi Hughes that ended on July 22 in Shawnee, Oklahoma.
In the show's other main title fight, Nina Hughes defends her WBA bantamweight title against former 122-pound belt holder Cherneka Johnson.
England's Hughes (6-0, 2 KOs) weighed in at 117.55 pounds for his second title defense since Nov. 2022.
Melbourne's Johnson (15-2, 6 KOs) weighed in at 116 ¾ pounds in a bid for a two-division title. He previously held the IBF 122 pounds title, which he lost to Ellie Scotney last June 10 in London. Scotney has combined the IBF and WBO titles and won The Ring championship.
Former title contenders Andrew Moloney (26-3, 16 KOs) and Pedro Guevara (41-4-1, 22 KOs) meet in a WBC 115-pound interim bout.
Moloney was 114 ½ pounds, while Guevara was under the 114.9 pound limit. Guevara replaces two-time champion Carlos Cuadras, who was forced to retire earlier this spring due to injury.
Jake Donovan is a senior writer for The Ring and vice president of the Boxing Writers Association of America.
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