IBF light welterweight champion Richardson Hitchins (20-0, 8 KOs) made it look easy, stopping a washed-looking George Kambosos Jr. (22-4, 10 KOs), stopping him in the eighth round in a fight that was too one-sided to be tertaining on Saturday night at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
In the eighth, Hitchins dropped Kambosos with a body shot, and that was it. Kambosos got up but was too hurt to continue. The referee waived it off at 2:33 of the round. It was too one-sided of a fight to call this entertaining. Hitchnins looked good, but wasn’t facing a true top-tier light welterweight. Kambosos looked over the hill tonight.
After the fight, Hitchins revealed that he wants Devin Haney next. That fight won’t happen unless Hitchins moves up to 147, which, as big as he was tonight, shouldn’t be a problem. He looked like a welterweight inside the ring, beating a much smaller Kambosos.
“It’s time for him to land a big fight,” said Eddie Hearn about Hitchins.
Undercard Results
Lightweight contender Andy Cruz (6-0, 3 KOs) looked outstanding tonight, chopping apart Hironori Mishiro (17-2-1, 6 KOs) to score a fifth-round technical knockout in their IBF 135-lb title eliminator. Mishiro was down twice in round three, was on the verge of going down in the fifth from a flurry of punches from Cruz, when the referee stepped in and stopped the fight. The time was at 1:13 of round five. Cruz is now the mandatory challenger for IBF lightweight champion Raymond Muratalla.
2023 Olympian heavyweight Teremoana Teremoana (8-0, 8 KOs) obliterated the hapless Aleem Whitfield (9-1, 6 KOs), knocking him out in the first round of a fight that wasn’t remotely competitive.
The 6’6″ Teremoana was swinging for the fences from the opening seconds, missing badly with right hands and left hooks. However, he finally cornered Whitfield, tagged him with two hard left hooks that had him out on his feet.
As Whitfield was sliding down, Teremoana hit him with a sharp right hand for good measure. The punch was not needed, but I guess Teremoana figured, just to be safe, to tag him again as he’s lifelessly falling. The official time of the stoppage was at 2:28 of round one.
With Teremoana’s Olympic credentials, he should be fighting much better opposition than this, especially given that he’s 27.
Super featherweight prospect Zaquin Moses (4-0, 3 KOs) slowly and methodically took apart southpaw Carl Rogers (3-3) before knocking him out in the fourth round. Looking like a more entertaining version of Shakur Stevenson, Moses knocked Rogers down with a right hook in the fourth, and then finished him off with a barrage of punches after he got back up. The time of the stoppage was at 1:51 of round four.
Moses, 20, mostly stood in the pocket, standing straight up, throwing pinpoint arm punches, and countering the wild shots that Rogers, 34, was throwing. Rogers connected with some big punches in the first couple of rounds that got the attention of Moses, but he took them well. By the fourth round, Zaquin was in full command, tagging the discouraged and tired-looking Rogers at will with shots.
Junior middleweight prospect Nishant Dev (2-0, 1 KOs) labored to an unimpressive six-round unanimous decision over Josue Silva (3-3, 1 KOs). The judges’ scores were 60-54, 60-54, and 60-54.
Super bantamweight Adam Maca (1-0, 1 KOs) obliterated Rafael Castillo (2-6, 1 KOs), scoring a second-round technical knockout in his pro debut. In the second round, Maca, 18, unleashed a storm of punches to put Castillo down on the canvas. When the action resumed, Maca tore into Castillo againt the ropes, forcing referee Arthur Mercante to waive it off. The official time of the stoppage was at 1:29 of the round.
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There’s a lot of pressure on Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs) to live up to all the hype about him, as he only has one notable win on his resume, Liam Paro, who has frequently looked pedestrian. At yesterday’s weigh-in, Hitchins looked skeletal, showing signs of the strain of making weight.
Today’s IBF secondary weigh-in could take something out of Richardson because he’s had to limit fluid intake to abide by the IBF’s 10-lb rehydration rule. It’s less of an issue for Kambosos, who moved up to 140 from 135 in his last fight, and has a smaller frame.
Hitchins vs. Kambosos: DAZN Fight Time
Tonight’s Hitchins vs. Kambosos event begins on DAZN for the main card at 8 pm ET/4 pm PT. The prelims start at 6:30 pm ET/3:30 PT on DAZN.
DAZN Main Card at 8 pm ET
Richardson Hitchins vs. George Kambosos Jr.
Andy Cruz vs. Hironori Mishiro
Alexis Barriere vs. Roney Hines
Zaquin Moses vs. Carl Rogers
Pablo Valdez vs. Cesar Diaz
Preliminary card at 6:30 P.M. ET
Nishant Dev vs. Josue Silva
Adam Maca vs. Rafael Castillo
Teremoana Teremoana vs. Aleem Whitfield
Andy Cruz: Olympic Gold Medalist Shines
The technically gifted 2020 Olympic gold medalist, Andy Cruz (5-0, 2 KOs) could steal the limelight away from Hitchins by schooling Hironori Mishiro (17-1-1, 6 KOS) in their 12-round chief support bout. Cruz-Mishiro is an IBF lightweight title eliminator, with the winner to be a mandatory challenger for recently elevated Raymond Muratalla.
Cruz, 29, has an intelligent boxing style, but is entertaining and doesn’t put on boring performances that defensive fighters are known for. He has a mix of offense and defense. In Cruz’s last two fights, he’s looked like a diamond, beating Omar Salcido and Antonio Moran.
Richardson Hitchins needs a breakout performance tonight in his defense of his IBF light welterweight title against the fiery former undisputed lightweight champion George Kambosos Jr. in the main event at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, live on DAZN.
