George Kambosos Jr has made weight limit for his lightweight unification fight with Devin Haney on his third attempt after sensationally coming in 160 grams over at the pair’s weigh in on Saturday.
The Aussie was quick to dismiss the impact of his failure to hit the 135-pound lightweight mark after shedding the excess.
‘Art of war, baby, deception, let them believe that this was done … maybe I did this on purpose,’ he told the cheering crowd after taking to the scales again.
‘It changes nothing, it changes his (Haney’s) mindset now.’
Asked how he got rid of the 160 grams, he laughed and said, ‘I took a p**s, it was easy, I chilled out, I was about to have a free coffee.’
Kambosos flexes up as he makes the weight limit after shedding 160 grams in about an hour
‘The art of war, deception!’ the lightweight champ was quick to claim he missed the limit on purpose in order to mess with Haney’s mind
Kambosos’ father Jim texted, ‘Hot shower. Already on weight,’ half an hour after the first weight attempt, News Corp reported.
Earlier, the Aussie had to strip naked on the scales but still came in .36 of a pound overweight – just over 160 grams – and was given two hours to make the 61.23kg limit.
Kambosos clashed with Haney and got into his face when it first became apparent he’d missed the mark, with the American asked what they said to each other.
‘I said he ain’t s**t, he didn’t make weight,’ Haney responded.
‘He’s sucked up, he’s dry … I’m a true champion and champions make weight.’
It quickly became apparent Kambosos was over the limit on his first attempt at the weigh-in
The Aussie champ had to strip naked (pictured) in an effort to hit the 135 pound lightweight limit, but was still .36 of a pound over
Kambosos was heckled by a clearly overjoyed Haney camp when his first attempt to make weight failed, and he walked straight over and got into a shouting match with the American.
He then returned to the scales completely naked with a white towel covering his midsection, but losing his underwear still wasn’t enough to see him make the limit.
His father Jim appeared to be close to getting into a physical clash with Haney’s team as they shouted insults at his son.
Haney had no problems on the scales, coming in at 134.92 pounds.
Kambosos will now have to strip the excess weight off – something boxers usually do by sweating it out through spending time in a sauna or exercising with heavy clothing on.
Haney had no problems on the scales and lashed out at Kambosos afterwards
It’s a huge blow to the four-belt champion’s quest to take Haney’s WBC title in Sunday’s fight at Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium.
Boxers carefully cut weight before a fight an any last-minute change to their regime is regarded as a big advantage to their opponent.
Even if it’s a small amount of weight to cut – as is the case with Kambosos – the mistake can damage their mental preparation.
Should Kambosos fail to make the limit by 12.30pm local time, the fight could still go ahead but it would be a catchweight bout.
Haney’s promoter Bob Arum said the Australian will lose his titles if he doesn’t shed the weight.
‘If he doesn’t make weight he is f****d. He will lose his titles on the scale,’ Arum said.
‘He will lose his belts and Haney would be the only guy with the opportunity to win them. Kambosos is in deep s**t.’
Aussie boxing legend Jeff Fenech said Kambosos’ mistake will give Haney an edge
Kambosos flexes up after his shock failure to get under the limit. Shedding the 160grams could be as simple as having a sauna but it will still be a blow to the Aussie’s build-up
Aussie boxing legend Jeff Fenech said there was no problem with the official scales and Kambosos would have checked his weight an hour or so beforehand at his hotel and been shocked he missed the limit.
‘He checked them on his scales apparently at his hotel and they said he was on weight (but) the official scales are what count. A little disappointing, that.
‘He might jump some rope, go to a sauna somewhere, go for a run – it could take 10 minutes, he could just go to the toilet,’ Fenech explained.
‘Every hour counts … but he’ll have no problems, plenty of time to rehydrate.
‘It gives Devin Haney a bit of an edge.’
Kambosos told Fox Sports on Friday that he was about a kilo over the limit and was confident he’d have no problems getting under.
Source: Daily Mail Online