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- Who: George Kambosos Jr. vs. Maxi Hughes
- Date: Saturday, July 22, 2023
- Time: 10 p.m. ET
- Location: Firelake Arena in Shawnee, Oklahoma.
- How to Watch: ESPN+
Former undisputed lightweight boxing champion George Kambosos Jr. returns to the ring on July 22 against Maxi Hughes. The lightweight fight takes place at Firelake Arena in Shawnee, Oklahoma. ESPN+ will stream the matchup live. Kambosos is currently the No. 7 ranked fighter in the lightweight division according to The Ring. Meanwhile, “The bible of boxing” has Hughes rated at No. 9 in the 135-pound division. Here is some background on the fighters before we discuss, in detail, the betting breakdown of the George Kambosos Jr. vs. Maxi Hughes fight.
Kambosos was 19-0 when he scored a win over Teofimo Lopez to claim the undisputed lightweight title in November 2021. In his first bout at the top of the division, Kambosos lost to Devin Haney by unanimous decision. Haney also triumphed in the rematch. Now 20-2 with 10 wins via knockout, Kambosos has not fought since his second loss to Haney in October 2022.
Hughes holds the IBO lightweight title, a crown he defended in September with a majority decision over Kid Galahad. Hughes sports a 26-5-2 record with five knockouts. He is currently riding a seven-fight winning streak, with his last loss being a November 2019 unanimous decision setback to Liam Walsh.
Before we look at the lightweight fight between George Kambosos Jr. and Maxi Hughes, check out the best boxing betting sites, where you can find the best boxing picks.
George Kambosos Jr. vs. Maxi Hughes betting picks
| Fighters |  |  |  |
| George Kambosos Jr. | -375 | -260 | -312 |
| Maxi Hughes | +275 | +210 | +209 |
George Kambosos Jr. vs. Maxi Hughes betting breakdown
We saw an improved version of George Kambosos in his rematch with Devin Haney. The now 29-year-old made adjustments to his game in that fight, switching stances, employing more active footwork, and showing a lot of odd angles. In short, Kambosos tried to be unpredictable.
What Kambosos didn’t do against Haney was match his stance switching with offense. If he wants to succeed with this style of fighting, Kambosos needs to be more fluid and up his output, even if it is just connecting with jabs.
I applaud Kambosos for trying a different approach in the Haney rematch, and even though it did not result in a win, that’s a positive for him and his camp, and it shows they are unafraid to learn lessons and try new things.
The 33-year-old Hughes needs to be aware of this new wrinkle in Kambosos’ game and counter it. He needs to catch Kambosos while he is in the middle of stance switching and tag him with power punches when Kambosos is off balance. That will either reduce the number of stance changes or earn him a knockdown. Either result will benefit Hughes as the fight wears on.
George Kambosos Jr. vs. Maxi Hughes: Who has the edge?
This is, by far, the biggest fight of Hughes’ career. A win here, and he’ll get himself in the conversation to face a big(ger) name opponent in the lightweight division, which, right now, couldn’t be hotter with fighters like Devin Haney, Vasiliy Lomachenko, Gervonta Davis, Isaac Cruz, Ryan Garcia, Shakur Stevenson, and Frank Martin rated higher than Kambosos. As for the former champ, he can’t take this fight lightly. Kambosos is fighting on a new deal with Top Rank, and the promotion, no doubt, wants him back in the mix with the top fighters in the division. He needs to put on a memorable performance against Hughes. He can’t just win, he has to win big and decisively. Kambosos has the skills to do that, but Hughes is a wildcard. He has nothing to lose in this matchup, which makes him extremely dangerous.
Best Bets for George Kambosos Jr. vs. Maxi Hughes
Maxi Hughes is a live underdog in this fight, and if one feels that George Kambosos lacks the mental fortitude to come back from back-to-back losses to Devin Haney, then there is some value in placing a wager on the British boxer. However, my betting pick is for Kambosos to come back from the Haney defeats as a focused and determined competitor. The best bet for George Kambosos vs. Maxi Hughes is to pick Kambosos to win via decision.
Best betting pick: George Kambosos to beat Maxi Hughes by decision.
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