• Devin Haney will defend his lightweight world title against George Kambosos.
• Unbeaten Haney has a 28-0 record with 15 knockouts.
• Jason Moloney of Australia will fight Nawaphon Kaikanha of Thailand for the title.

Sunday in Melbourne, undisputed lightweight world champion Devin Haney will defend his title against George Kambosos in a rematch for the championship.

In June, the unbeaten American defeated the Australian on unanimous points to become the first undisputed lightweight champion since Pernell Whitaker in 1990.

A rematch was stipulated in his contract, and it will take place in Rod Laver Arena, best known as the center court for the Australian Open tennis tournament. Rod Laver Arena is substantially smaller than the 41,000-seat Marvel Stadium, which hosted the first fight.

Haney, who has a 28-0 record with 15 knockouts, told reporters, “Obviously he’s going to come in with a better game plan, so I’m going to need to be better than I was last time.”

“Life hasn’t changed. Of course, I have the belts. I worked hard for it, and I knew the time would come, so nothing has changed. Now it’s time to defend and come out victorious .”

In June, Haney’s speed, instinct, and relentless left hook overpowered Kambosos in a defensive masterclass by the American.

Haney, 23 years old, stated that he had “tunnel vision” for another victory and could handle whatever the Australian sends.

He said, “I can’t say what he can do differently because I have all the answers for anything he brings to the table.”

“We’ve been studying him like crazy. We know what he does. We know the mistakes that he makes and the habits that he has.”

‘Do or die’

Haney is only the eighth boxer to simultaneously hold all four belts from the four major sanctioning organizations — WBC, WBA, IBF, and WBO — thanks to his victory last time.

Kambosos suffered his first loss since making his professional debut in 2013.

He entered the battle in a blaze of publicity, boasting about his credentials and disparaging Haney, an approach he now acknowledges detracted from what he was there to do: defend his IBF, WBA, and WBO titles and win the WBC belt Haney possessed.

The highly tattooed 29-year-old father of three stated, “Instead of staying focused on winning, on what got me to the title, I got caught up in trying to make myself a bigger brand.”

“In the lead-up to that last fight, every day the gym was packed. There was media all the time, too. And I just couldn’t focus.”

This time, he has taken minimal steps to become “zoned in.”

“So Haney can say what he likes in the build-up. Social media can say whatever it likes, too. Nothing will break my focus,” he told the press.

When the bout was announced, Kambosos claimed he would retire if he did not win, describing it as “do or die.”

Two-time world title challenger Jason Moloney of Australia faces Nawaphon Kaikanha of Thailand in the last eliminator for the WBC bantamweight championship.

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