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Mike Coppinger
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Ben Baby
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ESPN Staff Writer- ESPN Staff Writer
- Previously a college football writer for The Dallas Morning News
- University of North Texas graduate
Devin Haney returns to Australia to face George Kambosos Jr. in a rematch of his victory in June to win the undisputed lightweight championship. The fight will be the main event of a card at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne (ESPN/ESPN+, 10:30 p.m. ET with prelims at 8 p.m. on ESPN+).
Haney (28-0, 15 KOs), 23, of San Francisco, dominated Kambosos in their first fight, though two of the scorecards were closer than it appeared to warrant (the judges had it 116-112, 118-110 and 116-112). ESPN scored the bout 118-110 for Haney.
Kambosos (20-1, 10 KOs), 29, of Sydney, scored a big upset when he defeated Teofimo Lopez Jr. by split decision last November in New York. After the loss to Haney, Kambosos quickly exercised his rematch clause.
In Brooklyn, New York, former heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder faces former sparring partner Robert Helenius in the main event of a boxing card at Barclays Center (Fox PPV, 9 p.m. ET).
Wilder (42-2-1, 41 KOs), 36, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, is coming off consecutive stoppage losses to Tyson Fury. After taking a year off, Wilder returns with the goal of fighting again for a title in 2023.
Helenius (31-3, 20 KOs), 38, of Stockholm, has won three consecutive fights. His last loss was against Gerald Washington in July 2019.
Follow along as Mike Coppinger and Ben Baby recap the fights as they happen. You can also watch the Haney-Kambosos card on ESPN+.
Next fights in Australia: Devin Haney vs. George Kambosos Jr., 12 rounds, for Haney’s WBC, WBO, IBF and WBA lightweight titles
Next fight in New York: Caleb Plant vs. Anthony Dirrell, 12 rounds, super middleweights
Results:
In New York: Frank Sanchez def. Carlos Negron by ninth-round TKO
Fight recap coming up …
In Australia: Jason Moloney def. Nawaphon Kaikanha by unanimous decision (118-110, 118-110 and 119-109)
Fight recap coming up …
In New York: Rodriguez dominates Russell in technical decision
Emmanuel Rodriguez dazzled in a dominating upset victory over Gary Antonio Russell. Rodriguez used a sharp, chopping right hand to hurt Russell often in a technical decision, handing Russell his first professional loss. The bout was called after ringside physicians ruled Rodriguez couldn’t continue following an accidental headbutt in the ninth round. The official scorecards had the Puerto Rican ahead 100-90, 99-91, 99-93.
Things got weird starting in the eighth round. Rodriguez put Russell (19-1, 12 KOs) down at the end of the round. Russell stumbled to his feet and beat referee Benjy Esteves’s 10 count. However, the bell for the round never rang and there was confusion on whether it ended.
Once things finally restarted, Russell recovered before he and Rodriguez (21-2, 13 KOs) clashed heads. Rodriguez went down and finished the round. The doctors opted to call the bout at the start of the 10th.
It’s not the first time these two men have been involved in controversy. This was a rematch of their August 2021 bout that ended as a no-contest after they clashed heads 16 seconds into the fight and Rodriguez wasn’t able to continue.
In Australia: Andrew Moloney dominates Jimenez in decision win
Andrew Moloney dropped Norbelto Jimenez twice en route to a unanimous-decision victory in a 10-round junior bantamweight bout. The scores: 97-90, 98-89 and 99-88.
Moloney (25-2, 16 KOs) knocked down Jimenez with a jab in the closing seconds of Round 1. Jimenez, 31, a former title challenger from Dominican Republic, was also penalized one point in the opening round for hitting on the break, placing him in an early hole on the cards.
The point deduction was questionable. The referee never issued a warning. In Round 2, Jimenez was on the canvas again, this time from a cuffing right hand that appeared to be a dubious knockdown call from the official.
Andrew Moloney, the twin brother of Jason Moloney, beat Jimenez (31-9-6, 16 KOs) to the punch throughout the fight and inflicted plenty of damage to the body with precise shots. The 31-year-old Australian was competing on the undercard of Haney and Kambosos for the second consecutive outing.
In June, Moloney scored a second-round TKO of Alexander Espinoza.
In Australia: Johnson retains title with decision win
It was clearly not an easy night for Cherneka Johnson in the first defense of her IBF junior featherweight title. An accidental clash of heads caused a nasty, blood-spewing cut on her left forehead in the second round. Her opponent, Susie Ramadan, had two points deducted — one for not listening to the referee and another for hitting Johnson in the back of the head.
None of that mattered, as Johnson took a 97-90, 96-92, 96-91 unanimous decision over Ramadan after knocking her opponent down in the fourth round and adjusting to the cut. Her white top looked tie-dyed red by the end of the fight.
Johnson (15-1, 6 KOs), ESPN’s No. 4 junior featherweight, dominated the fight despite the cut. The 27-year-old moved well against Ramadan (29-4, 12 KOs), mixing up her cadences and her punches to fluster the former WBC bantamweight champion.
It’s a good start for Johnson, who was born in New Zealand but lives in Melbourne, Australia, to set up intriguing fights down the road. A fight against 24-year-old Yamileth Mercado, the WBC champion who fights Mariana Juarez later Saturday night in Mexico, could be an option for Johnson if she keeps winning. — Michael Rothstein
Still to come:
In New York: