George Kambosos Jr is a 31-year-old Greek-Australian professional boxer who started boxing at a very tender age. The father of 3 was notably ranked the world’s number one lightweight by The Ring and TBRB in September 2022 due to his impressive career records.
Although Kambosos Jr is known as a successful professional boxer the world over, he had a rough childhood and career start-up because he was overweight. However, his father enrolled him in boxing classes when he turned 11 and this became his roadmap to body fitness and career success.
Early Life and Career of George Kambosos Jr
George was born on June 14, 1993, in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia to parents of Greek origin. His father has been identified as Jim Kambosos while Information about his mother and siblings is still in the shadows.
The professional boxer attended Bexley Public School in the southern suburbs of Sydney and began playing junior rugby league for the Gymea Gorillas at a young age. However, he was always bullied by his peers because he was very fat.
Concerned by this development, George’s father decided to enroll him in boxing classes when he turned 11 in order to help him improve his fitness. As soon as he began boxing, he was able to lose 14kg. That was when he made the move to become a professional fighter.
Kambosos Jr was later placed in the Cronulla Sharks development squad where he was coached in boxing by Ricky Stuart throughout his teenage years.
He Made His Professional Boxing Debut in 2013
George went pro in 2013. Some of his early professional victories include his fight with the Filipino fighter, Mac Gura. He emerged the winner via a second-round technical knockout.
Similarly, he captured the WBA Oceania title in 2016 after defeating world number nine, Brandon Ogilvie.
The 31-year-old fighter also defeated famous fighters like Qamil Balla and Krai Settaphon in 2017, pushing him to clinch the WBO Oceania and IBF Pan Pacific titles in the lightweight division.
Kambosos Jr Has Maintained an Impressive Career Record
Since making his professional career debut, Kambosos has been able to maintain an impressive record. In May 2018, he made his debut in the US and was able to knock out Jose Forero in just 1 minute, and 48 seconds.
In January 2019, he defeated Rey Perez at The MGM Grand in Las Vegas on the undercard of Manny Pacquiao vs Adrien Broner via unanimous decision in his second fight on US soil.
More on his successes, Kambosos returned to his native land of Greece and knocked out Venezuelan 11–2 (9 KOs) Richard Pena in round six in front of the packed-out Galatsi Olympic Hall.
Furthermore, George faced his most formidable opponent on December 14, 2019. This opponent was Mickey Bey, a former IBF lightweight champion. George was able to win the bout by split decision on the undercard of Terence Crawford vs Egidijus Kavaliauskas. Scorecards read 97-92, 96-93, and 94-95 in favor of George.
The other fights that George has won include; Kambosos vs Selby (October 31, 2020) and Kambosos vs López (October 6, 2021).
As of 13 October 2022, he has a total of 21 fights and 20 wins out of which, 10 were won by knockouts.
His Highly Anticipated Rematch with Devin Haney is Slated for Saturday, October 15, 2022
Lovers of boxing the world over are anticipating an epic rematch in the lightweight division on October 15, 2020. The match will be between George Kambosos Jr and Devin Haney.
It will be recalled that the opponents had a lightweight unification professional boxing match which took place on June 5, 2022, at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia, with the winner set to become the first undisputed lightweight champion since Pernell Whitaker in 1990, and the first in the four-belt era.
Unfortunately for him, George was unable to make weight on his first attempt. He initially weighed in at 135.36 lbs, 0.36 lbs over the 135 lb limit for the lightweight division. On his second attempt which came up an hour later, within the two-hour limit, he weighed in at 134.49 lbs.
George was ultimately defeated by Haney after a unanimous decision. Two judges scored the fight 116-112 and one judge scored it 118-110, all in favor of Haney. The deal for the fight included an automatic rematch clause which is scheduled for Saturday, October 15, 2022, in Australia, Rod Laver Arena.
It is expected that George Kambosos Jr. will avenge the only loss of his career with the rematch. If not, Haney will successfully defend his titles which include the WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring lightweight.
SEE ALSO: Devin Haney: Bio, Record, Net Worth, Other Unknown Details
George Kambosos Jr Planned on Marrying His Long-Time Partner If He Wins Fight with Haney
Kambosos Jr had revealed that he will officially tie the knot with his long-time partner; Bec Pereira after his anticipated victory against Haney. The boxer currently shares 3 kids with Bec, namely; Santiago, Leonidas, and Evaliah.
According to George, he met Bec in 2014 and he was having only $50 in his pocket at that time. He has described her as an incredible woman who stood by him through all of his challenges and now promises to marry her in a big fat Greek wedding after his match.
On her part, Bec has said she has been happy to delay the wedding and allow George to focus on his boxing career even though she has been under pressure from family and friends. She said there is no need to rush as her kids with the boxing champion are worth more than a ring and a vow to her.
How Rich is George Kambosos Jr?
Kambosos Jr has not officially stated how much his net worth is in specific terms. However, he is reportedly worth $1.5 million according to several sources. George’s fortunes are apparently from his booming boxing career.
Similarly, Kambosos who is holding the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and The Ring lightweight titles will pocket a huge guaranteed purse of $10 million if he is able to defend his titles in his match against Haney.
5 Quick Facts About Kambosos
1. George said going to school was like hell for him when he was much younger. According to him, the kids in his school used to call him several names like ‘fatty’ or ‘fatso’ because of his weight. More so, nobody wanted to select him when they were making selections for the school rugby team and this made him feel always left out.
2. He uses his influence to encourage kids the world over who are victims of bullying like he was.
3. George found himself at a crossroads as a teenager when he was forced to choose between boxing and rugby league. He apparently chose the former.
4. He has the famous Spartan war cry Never retreat, never surrender tattooed on his body in homage to his heritage.
5. Kambosos lost a fight for the first time when he was matched with Devin Haney on June 5, 2022, in Marvel Stadium, Melbourne, Australia.
As the world awaits the much-anticipated rematch between George and Devin, each of the fighters has continued to express optimism about winning. Neverlesss, only one winner is expected to emerge, with a very loud rewarding victory this time around. Who will it be?
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