'Take him to school': American's threat to Kambosos Jr
Tired of the trash talk, Richardson Hitchins is promising to send George Kambosos Jr back to Australia with tail between his legs.
Kambosos (22-3, 10KOs) will bid to join the great Jeff Fenech as a multi-division world champion when he takes on Hitchins (19-0, 7KOs) for the American's IBF super-lightweight belt at New York's Madison Square Garden Theatre on Sunday (AEST).
Sydney's former unified lightweight champ is up in class and Hitchins suspects probably out of his league too despite Kambosos spruiking about maintaining his perfect record in the US.
Be it by knockout or through sheer boxing smarts, Hitchins doesn't care how he wins, just as long as he puts Kambosos in his place after an explosive build-up spiced with threats, bets and a cancelled face-off after the two combatants almost came to blows on Friday.
"I know I've been promising everybody a knockout, but, to be honest, bro, the way George has been talking trash, like I really don't got skills, I really feel like I'm gonna just, like, beat him up," Hitchins told AAP.
"Or it just depends how George comes.
"If he wants to be like the common fighter who would think that I don't have that much skills, like be aggressive and come at me and think that's what he has to do, if he does that, he's gonna get stopped.
"But if he tries to make me think and shit like that, then I don't know. I might just have to just take him to school.
"If he really wants to come out and take a fast-ass whooping, he's gonna get stopped.
"If he wanna be strategic, then I'm not gonna be dumb. I'm not gonna be the first to make mistakes, so then it's gonna be a lesson."
For all his bravado, Hitchins - who took down Australian Liam Paro last December to claim the strap, insists he respects the challenger.
He saw enough in Kambosos's shock victory over Teofimo Lopez at Madison Square Garden in late 2021 to know the 32-year-old Sydney slugger can be dangerous.
"I know he's got fast hands," the New Yorker said.
"He's a little twitchy. He's aware in the ring. He do have boxing abilities. I can see how he made a living in the sport.
"He's not a dumb fighter. He knows when to hold. He has deceptive timing.
"There's things in the boxing ring, qualities ... I can see why he's at where he at in boxing. I can see why he didn't stop in the amateurs and he kept pursuing boxing."
But just not as good as him, says Hitchins, who added he could "see the comparisons" between himself and Devin Haney, the two-divisional pound-for-pound king who stripped Kambosos of his IBF, WBC and WBO belts with two wins over the Australian in Melbourne in 2022.
"Definitely the stylistic comparisons but, if you get really in depth with it, I feel like I display that style ... better," Hitchins warned.
"I think my style is better.
"Yeah, he probably got Lopez, but we'll see."
Tired of the trash talk, Richardson Hitchins is promising to send George Kambosos Jr back to Australia with tail between his legs.
Kambosos (22-3, 10KOs) will bid to join the great Jeff Fenech as a multi-division world champion when he takes on Hitchins (19-0, 7KOs) for the American's IBF super-lightweight belt at New York's Madison Square Garden Theatre on Sunday (AEST).
Sydney's former unified lightweight champ is up in class and Hitchins suspects probably out of his league too despite Kambosos spruiking about maintaining his perfect record in the US.
Be it by knockout or through sheer boxing smarts, Hitchins doesn't care how he wins, just as long as he puts Kambosos in his place after an explosive build-up spiced with threats, bets and a cancelled face-off after the two combatants almost came to blows on Friday.
"I know I've been promising everybody a knockout, but, to be honest, bro, the way George has been talking trash, like I really don't got skills, I really feel like I'm gonna just, like, beat him up," Hitchins told AAP.
"Or it just depends how George comes.
"If he wants to be like the common fighter who would think that I don't have that much skills, like be aggressive and come at me and think that's what he has to do, if he does that, he's gonna get stopped.
"But if he tries to make me think and shit like that, then I don't know. I might just have to just take him to school.
"If he really wants to come out and take a fast-ass whooping, he's gonna get stopped.
"If he wanna be strategic, then I'm not gonna be dumb. I'm not gonna be the first to make mistakes, so then it's gonna be a lesson."
For all his bravado, Hitchins - who took down Australian Liam Paro last December to claim the strap, insists he respects the challenger.
He saw enough in Kambosos's shock victory over Teofimo Lopez at Madison Square Garden in late 2021 to know the 32-year-old Sydney slugger can be dangerous.
"I know he's got fast hands," the New Yorker said.
"He's a little twitchy. He's aware in the ring. He do have boxing abilities. I can see how he made a living in the sport.
"He's not a dumb fighter. He knows when to hold. He has deceptive timing.
"There's things in the boxing ring, qualities ... I can see why he's at where he at in boxing. I can see why he didn't stop in the amateurs and he kept pursuing boxing."
But just not as good as him, says Hitchins, who added he could "see the comparisons" between himself and Devin Haney, the two-divisional pound-for-pound king who stripped Kambosos of his IBF, WBC and WBO belts with two wins over the Australian in Melbourne in 2022.
"Definitely the stylistic comparisons but, if you get really in depth with it, I feel like I display that style ... better," Hitchins warned.
"I think my style is better.
"Yeah, he probably got Lopez, but we'll see."
Tired of the trash talk, Richardson Hitchins is promising to send George Kambosos Jr back to Australia with tail between his legs.
Kambosos (22-3, 10KOs) will bid to join the great Jeff Fenech as a multi-division world champion when he takes on Hitchins (19-0, 7KOs) for the American's IBF super-lightweight belt at New York's Madison Square Garden Theatre on Sunday (AEST).
Sydney's former unified lightweight champ is up in class and Hitchins suspects probably out of his league too despite Kambosos spruiking about maintaining his perfect record in the US.
Be it by knockout or through sheer boxing smarts, Hitchins doesn't care how he wins, just as long as he puts Kambosos in his place after an explosive build-up spiced with threats, bets and a cancelled face-off after the two combatants almost came to blows on Friday.
"I know I've been promising everybody a knockout, but, to be honest, bro, the way George has been talking trash, like I really don't got skills, I really feel like I'm gonna just, like, beat him up," Hitchins told AAP.
"Or it just depends how George comes.
"If he wants to be like the common fighter who would think that I don't have that much skills, like be aggressive and come at me and think that's what he has to do, if he does that, he's gonna get stopped.
"But if he tries to make me think and shit like that, then I don't know. I might just have to just take him to school.
"If he really wants to come out and take a fast-ass whooping, he's gonna get stopped.
"If he wanna be strategic, then I'm not gonna be dumb. I'm not gonna be the first to make mistakes, so then it's gonna be a lesson."
For all his bravado, Hitchins - who took down Australian Liam Paro last December to claim the strap, insists he respects the challenger.
He saw enough in Kambosos's shock victory over Teofimo Lopez at Madison Square Garden in late 2021 to know the 32-year-old Sydney slugger can be dangerous.
"I know he's got fast hands," the New Yorker said.
"He's a little twitchy. He's aware in the ring. He do have boxing abilities. I can see how he made a living in the sport.
"He's not a dumb fighter. He knows when to hold. He has deceptive timing.
"There's things in the boxing ring, qualities ... I can see why he's at where he at in boxing. I can see why he didn't stop in the amateurs and he kept pursuing boxing."
But just not as good as him, says Hitchins, who added he could "see the comparisons" between himself and Devin Haney, the two-divisional pound-for-pound king who stripped Kambosos of his IBF, WBC and WBO belts with two wins over the Australian in Melbourne in 2022.
"Definitely the stylistic comparisons but, if you get really in depth with it, I feel like I display that style ... better," Hitchins warned.
"I think my style is better.
"Yeah, he probably got Lopez, but we'll see."
Tired of the trash talk, Richardson Hitchins is promising to send George Kambosos Jr back to Australia with tail between his legs.
Kambosos (22-3, 10KOs) will bid to join the great Jeff Fenech as a multi-division world champion when he takes on Hitchins (19-0, 7KOs) for the American's IBF super-lightweight belt at New York's Madison Square Garden Theatre on Sunday (AEST).
Sydney's former unified lightweight champ is up in class and Hitchins suspects probably out of his league too despite Kambosos spruiking about maintaining his perfect record in the US.
Be it by knockout or through sheer boxing smarts, Hitchins doesn't care how he wins, just as long as he puts Kambosos in his place after an explosive build-up spiced with threats, bets and a cancelled face-off after the two combatants almost came to blows on Friday.
"I know I've been promising everybody a knockout, but, to be honest, bro, the way George has been talking trash, like I really don't got skills, I really feel like I'm gonna just, like, beat him up," Hitchins told AAP.
"Or it just depends how George comes.
"If he wants to be like the common fighter who would think that I don't have that much skills, like be aggressive and come at me and think that's what he has to do, if he does that, he's gonna get stopped.
"But if he tries to make me think and shit like that, then I don't know. I might just have to just take him to school.
"If he really wants to come out and take a fast-ass whooping, he's gonna get stopped.
"If he wanna be strategic, then I'm not gonna be dumb. I'm not gonna be the first to make mistakes, so then it's gonna be a lesson."
For all his bravado, Hitchins - who took down Australian Liam Paro last December to claim the strap, insists he respects the challenger.
He saw enough in Kambosos's shock victory over Teofimo Lopez at Madison Square Garden in late 2021 to know the 32-year-old Sydney slugger can be dangerous.
"I know he's got fast hands," the New Yorker said.
"He's a little twitchy. He's aware in the ring. He do have boxing abilities. I can see how he made a living in the sport.
"He's not a dumb fighter. He knows when to hold. He has deceptive timing.
"There's things in the boxing ring, qualities ... I can see why he's at where he at in boxing. I can see why he didn't stop in the amateurs and he kept pursuing boxing."
But just not as good as him, says Hitchins, who added he could "see the comparisons" between himself and Devin Haney, the two-divisional pound-for-pound king who stripped Kambosos of his IBF, WBC and WBO belts with two wins over the Australian in Melbourne in 2022.
"Definitely the stylistic comparisons but, if you get really in depth with it, I feel like I display that style ... better," Hitchins warned.
"I think my style is better.
"Yeah, he probably got Lopez, but we'll see."
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Once I start winning a couple of matches on grass and start feeling good, all the other things start clicking for me." In the other European ATP event going on in Rosmalen, Ugo Humbert, the only seed left in the draw, crashed out to Gabriel Diallo 6-3 7-6 (7-4) in the semi-final. The Canadian advances to a final duel with Belgium's Zizou Bergs, with the p[air both seeking their maiden title. Bergs had little trouble overcoming Daniil Medvedev's American conqueror Reilly Opelka 6-1 6-4. German star Alexander Zverev has taken out US third seed Ben Shelton with a 7-6 (10-8) 7-6 (7-1) victory in the semi-finals of the Stuttgart Open to set up a showdown with his nemesis Taylor Fritz. Zverev and Shelton tested each other in a high-quality encounter before the world No.3 played a near flawless tiebreak to clinch the match in little over two hours on Saturday and stretch his career win-loss record over the American to 3-0. The 28-year-old banged down 15 aces, 35 winners and did not face a break point in front of his home crowd to reach his first grass-court final in eight years. "I'm super happy to be in the final, it's my first grass-court final since 2017," Zverev said. "It's been eight years. I actually really like playing on the surface. I'm happy to be in the final in Germany again, I'm looking forward to it." But in the final, a bigger test awaits Zverev as he tackles Fritz, the American who's beaten him on the last four occasions they've played over the past year. Despite the defeat, Shelton can take plenty of positives from the ATP 250 event, with the 22-year-old set to make his top 10 debut in the ATP rankings on Monday. In the first semi-final, Fritz, ranked seventh in the world, sent down 10 aces and 23 winners, winning 86 percent of his first-serve points to knock out Canadian fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4 7-6 (7-5). "The clay-court season wasn't the best for me, so I came here more motivated to start the grass season off well," said Fritz after reaching his first tour-level final since November. "I'm super happy that I've been able to start it off with a final. "I'm locked in and ready to go. Once I start winning a couple of matches on grass and start feeling good, all the other things start clicking for me." In the other European ATP event going on in Rosmalen, Ugo Humbert, the only seed left in the draw, crashed out to Gabriel Diallo 6-3 7-6 (7-4) in the semi-final. The Canadian advances to a final duel with Belgium's Zizou Bergs, with the p[air both seeking their maiden title. Bergs had little trouble overcoming Daniil Medvedev's American conqueror Reilly Opelka 6-1 6-4. German star Alexander Zverev has taken out US third seed Ben Shelton with a 7-6 (10-8) 7-6 (7-1) victory in the semi-finals of the Stuttgart Open to set up a showdown with his nemesis Taylor Fritz. Zverev and Shelton tested each other in a high-quality encounter before the world No.3 played a near flawless tiebreak to clinch the match in little over two hours on Saturday and stretch his career win-loss record over the American to 3-0. The 28-year-old banged down 15 aces, 35 winners and did not face a break point in front of his home crowd to reach his first grass-court final in eight years. "I'm super happy to be in the final, it's my first grass-court final since 2017," Zverev said. "It's been eight years. I actually really like playing on the surface. I'm happy to be in the final in Germany again, I'm looking forward to it." But in the final, a bigger test awaits Zverev as he tackles Fritz, the American who's beaten him on the last four occasions they've played over the past year. Despite the defeat, Shelton can take plenty of positives from the ATP 250 event, with the 22-year-old set to make his top 10 debut in the ATP rankings on Monday. In the first semi-final, Fritz, ranked seventh in the world, sent down 10 aces and 23 winners, winning 86 percent of his first-serve points to knock out Canadian fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4 7-6 (7-5). "The clay-court season wasn't the best for me, so I came here more motivated to start the grass season off well," said Fritz after reaching his first tour-level final since November. "I'm super happy that I've been able to start it off with a final. "I'm locked in and ready to go. Once I start winning a couple of matches on grass and start feeling good, all the other things start clicking for me." In the other European ATP event going on in Rosmalen, Ugo Humbert, the only seed left in the draw, crashed out to Gabriel Diallo 6-3 7-6 (7-4) in the semi-final. The Canadian advances to a final duel with Belgium's Zizou Bergs, with the p[air both seeking their maiden title. Bergs had little trouble overcoming Daniil Medvedev's American conqueror Reilly Opelka 6-1 6-4.
