George Kambosos Jr. has detailed how sparring with Manny Pacquiao helped him dethrone Teofimo Lopez.
On Nov. 27, Kambosos had the biggest fight of his pro boxing career. He went one-on-one with Lopez for the WBA, IBF, WBO, The Ring, and WBC (Franchise) Lightweight Titles. Kambosos was a massive underdog going into the fight but he pulled off the split decision victory.
George Kambosos Credits Sparring With Manny Pacquiao
George Kambosos helped Pacquiao prepare for his 2017 clash with Jeff Horn. Appearing on The Joe Rogan Experience, Kambosos shared how those sparring sessions helped him.
“The power that he possesses but it’s not a thumping power. It’s that explosive speed, that explosive power, the footwork, he gets in position, and then all of a sudden he’s landed three, four, five shots, and then he’s angled off a lot like I did in my fight against Lopez. A lot of that sparring paid off and it did shape me. I know he did put out a tweet as well saying that, ‘I hope the sparring we did helped you in this fight,’ and straightaway I was so excited. He’s a legend of the sport.”
Congratulations to my friend, @georgekambosos, on an epic win! You helped me in so many of my past fights, I hope our hundreds of rounds of sparring helped you in some way tonight. I’m proud of you. #LopezKambosos
— Manny Pacquiao (@MannyPacquiao) November 28, 2021
Kambosos says he sparred with Pacquiao for 250 rounds. There’s no doubt that “Pac-Man” is a future Hall of Famer. He made the decision to retire from the sport of boxing following his August loss to Yordenis Ugas.
Pacquiao was expected to meet WBC and IBF Welterweight Champion Errol Spence Jr. instead of Ugas. That plan changed with Spence as he suffered a retinal tear in his left eye.