Undefeated IBF world junior welterweight champion and Brooklyn native Richardson Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs) will face former unified champion George Kambosos Jr. (22-3-0, 10 KOs) next Saturday at the Theater at Madison Square Garden.
“It means everything to me to headline my first big world championship fight in New York City, and this is the first of many,” the 27-year-old Hitchins told the AmNews of defending the title he won last December in Puerto Rico with a victory over Liam Paro. “I think that I’m going to be bringing back boxing for years to come. I’m going to be one of the guys to (represent) New York City like no one has ever seen before.”
The confident fighter, who represented Haiti at the 2016 Olympics, also said his goal is to become one of the fight game’s signature figures. “I think that I’m going to be one of the fighters to take over the sport,” he said. “It’s not a race, it’s a marathon, so the world will see.”
The Crown Heights product characterized the 31-year-old Kambosos as a dangerous opponent. Kambosos is from Sydney, Australia, and defeated Teofimo Lopez Jr. in November 2021 to become the unified lightweight champion before losing that title to Devin Haney in June.
“He has the will to win, and that gives for a huge fight,” Hitchins said. “I just have to be sharp and be who I am, and that’s Richardson Hitchins. Once I’m that, we’ll get the job done … I believe in my talent, and I believe that I’m on a whole different level. I believe I’m on a level that he hasn’t seen yet. I think that he doesn’t even know who he’s about to be in the ring with. He’ll realize soon enough.”
Hitchins began boxing at the Dr. Atlas Foundation and Cops and Kids Gym on Staten Island, founded by legendary boxing trainer Teddy Atlas. “It was a gritty gym and one of the best things that ever happened to me in my life, period,” Hitchins said. “I started in that boxing gym, and it took me to places that I never thought I would see.”
UFC 316 takes place on Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. The main event features reigning UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili, defending his title against Sean O’Malley, whom he defeated for the title back in September in a decisive 49-46, 48-47, and 48-47 victory.
Dvalishvili (19-4, fighting out of Long Island, N.Y. by way of Tbilisi, Georgia) is currently on an 11-fight winning streak — the longest in UFC bantamweight history — but must be cautious of the powerful striking of O’Malley (18-2), which he demonstrated superbly to win the title last September at UFC 306 in Las Vegas.