George Kambosos Jr has confirmed his world title rematch against Devin Haney will be held on Sunday, October 16 at Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena.
The rematch comes after Haney (28-0) beat Kambosos (20-1) via unanimous decision on June 5 before a Victoria-record boxing crowd of 41,129.
It was there, in Melbourne’s Marvel stadium, that Haney neutralised the previously unbeaten Kambosos and became the undisputed world lightweight champion.
Speaking of the June world-title fight at a press conference today, Kambosos said “some mistakes were made” but he’s “blessed to be back.”
“Devin’s a good fighter, he’s a good champion and I look forward to testing my skills,” Kambosos said.
“There are a lot of people who are not excited about the rematch but as a former champion, as a fighter, how could I pass up on this opportunity?
“I want to be the best role model for my three kids so I had to take this rematch and I’m very excited for October 16.”
In recent months, boxing fans have called for the rematch title fight to be held in Sydney but Kambosos said today that he can’t wait to fight on a new stage at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne.
“Rod Laver is going to be beautiful. It’s a beautiful arena… 15 – 16,000 people. It’s going to be jam packed. It will be a total different atmosphere. This is a colosseum and you know, the underdog is back.”
Speaking with The Greek Herald, Kambosos sent a message of thanks to his Greek supporters.
“Regardless of wins and losses they’ll still be there, they’ll still be supporting and they wont be off a bandwagon – that’s real fans, that’s real love there,” he said.
“They make me very proud. They lift our nation and I know they’re going to be here … you’re going to be able to hear them, every roar its going to be there.”
Also in attendance at today’s press conference was fellow Greek Australian and the Victorian Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events, Steve Dimopoulos.
“With almost half of the crowd from the first fight hailing from outside Victoria, we look forward to welcoming boxing fans back to Melbourne to watch what will be an epic rematch,” Mr Dimopoulos said.
“We’re delivering a spectacular calendar of the biggest and best events – drawing more visitors to Victoria, more often and supporting businesses across the state.”
For his part, Haney said he has “a lot of respect” for Kambosos and he’s happy to be returning to Melbourne to defend his lightweight belt.
“I look forward to putting on another great performance and show how much I’ve improved since the last fight,” the American boxer said.
READ MORE: George Kambosos Jr: ‘Raising both flags on the world stage is a true honour’.
