George Kambosos Jr. had a rough 12-month stretch. From reaching the highest of highs following his upset win over Teofimo Lopez to hitting rock bottom after back-to-back defeats at the hands of Devin Haney, Kambosos simply needed a break.

He threw off his battery pack, placed it on the charger, and vowed to comeback bigger, faster, stronger, and better than ever. Well, the Aussie native did come back but his latest showing didn’t prove that he’s better than before.

This past weekend, at the Firelake Arena in Shawnee, Oklahoma, the former unified champ barely made it out of the building with a close and highly controversial win against Maxi Hughes. Despite the boo’s cascading, Kambosos believes that he dominated his man. With the 30-year-old rejoining the winner’s circle, he already has his eyes set on the next name he wants to face.

“We’ll fight Lomachenko next,” said Kambosos to a group of reporters. “That’s the fight.”

Facing Kambosos is an opportunity that Vasiliy Lomachenko may very well jump on but it isn’t quite as alluring as it once was. Immediately after beating Lopez in 2021, Kambosos offered to defend his unified throne against Lomachenko in his first defense.

Although he desperately wanted it to happen, Lomachenko passed on the opportunity and would instead remain in his native land to lend a helping hand during the ongoing Russian invasion. Beating Kambosos now wouldn’t result in Lomachenko winning a world title but it would allow him to wipe away the stench of a contentious decision loss at the hands of Haney just a few months ago.

At one point, the 30-year-old Aussie seriously sat down and contemplated whether or not he wanted to continue his career. He essentially nabbed every major world title at 135-pounds and made a boatload of money in the process. Simply put, Kambosos was a made man. But completing all of his goals in the ring seemingly made him listless and unmotivated.

If, however, a matchup against Lomachenko can become a reality, that’s the exact push that Kambosos believes he needs to light a fire under him.

“That’s a big fight that you really get up for.”