Boxing
Ryan Garcia on George Kambosos Jr.: 'I think there's a reason why everyone's licking their chops'
Watch Garcia vs. Tagoe live on DAZN
At the end of November, George Kambosos Jr. shocked the boxing world when he dropped Teofimo Lopez and won by split decision to win the IBF, WBA (super), and WBO lightweight titles.
All the heavy hitters in the division have called out Kambosos. WBC titlist Devin Haney, former unified champion Vasiliy Lomachenko and Ryan Garcia have thrown their respective hats into the ring for a crack at Kambosos. It appeared Lomachenko would be the one, but that is no longer the case. He is part of the territorial defense battalion in Ukraine, working a security detail on the border during the war with Russia. Because of that, Lomachenko has decided to remain in Ukraine to help in the war and be with his family.
Garcia is fighting Emmanuel Tagoe on April 9 on DAZN, so Haney can now possibly face Kambosos. However, before signing on the dotted line to square off against Tagoe, Garcia said he talked with his promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, about taking on Kambosos.
"That's a fight I definitely would want," . "There's a reason everyone's licking their chops (laughs). Everyone wants all them belts. (Kambosis is an) orthodox fighter, not tricky, kind of just right there. You know everybody's licking their chops to get those belts (laughs)."
Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) is complimentary of how Kambosos performed against Lopez. He doesn't want to take anything away from how Kambosos performed two days after Thanksgiving to become the top guy at 135 pounds. But Garcia feels guys are lining up for a shot at the Australian for a reason and not calling out other fighters.
All the heavy hitters in the division have called out Kambosos. WBC titlist Devin Haney, former unified champion Vasiliy Lomachenko and Ryan Garcia have thrown their respective hats into the ring for a crack at Kambosos. It appeared Lomachenko would be the one, but that is no longer the case. He is part of the territorial defense battalion in Ukraine, working a security detail on the border during the war with Russia. Because of that, Lomachenko has decided to remain in Ukraine to help in the war and be with his family.
Garcia is fighting Emmanuel Tagoe on April 9 on DAZN, so Haney can now possibly face Kambosos. However, before signing on the dotted line to square off against Tagoe, Garcia said he talked with his promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, about taking on Kambosos.
"That's a fight I definitely would want," . "There's a reason everyone's licking their chops (laughs). Everyone wants all them belts. (Kambosis is an) orthodox fighter, not tricky, kind of just right there. You know everybody's licking their chops to get those belts (laughs)."
Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) is complimentary of how Kambosos performed against Lopez. He doesn't want to take anything away from how Kambosos performed two days after Thanksgiving to become the top guy at 135 pounds. But Garcia feels guys are lining up for a shot at the Australian for a reason and not calling out other fighters.
"I don't want to call it a lucky night," Garcia said. "When I said the things I said with Chris Mannix, I didn't mean it as trying to discredit his victory. I'm just calling it how I see it. They asked me a question. I gave my opinion on it. I don't know him (Lopez), but what I've seen in the past, he's a lot more skilled than what he showed that night. What I seen was a guy that was underestimated and a guy that probably shouldn't have gotten that big three if everything was correctly (like) Teofimo’s 100 percent and at his top level, I think that he doesn't get the job done.
"That's not George Kambosos’ fault. That’s Teofimo’s fault. Really at the end of the day, congratulations to George Kambosos, who's a good fighter. But I think there's a reason why everyone's licking their chops. He has a chance to prove all these fighters wrong. So, you know, I could say a lot. He could say a lot, which he has. At the end of the day, we just got to go in there and see whose words stay true.
