Emiliano Vargas Targets Former Champion, Fernando Vargas Says

The Hall of Famer says Top Rank is negotiating a fight with a former world champion but declines to identify the opponent

Fernando Vargas says Top Rank is negotiating Emiliano Vargas’ next fight against a former world champion, describing it as the next step in his son’s development. While he refused to reveal the opponent, George Kambosos Jr. has repeatedly been identified by Team Vargas as a preferred target.

“We have a world champion, a former world champion, that we’re working on, but I can’t speak about that,” Vargas said to Sean Zittel. “I’m going to let Top Rank do their work because they know what they’re doing. They include me on asking me certain things, and I think that’s amazing. I want to always tell them the truth. Are we ready yet, or are we not ready yet? Top Rank has been doing this for ages. We’re with the right promotional company that knows what they’re doing.”

Although Vargas wouldn’t reveal the former champion’s identity, George Kambosos Jr. has been on Emiliano’s radar for months. In April, Vargas told The Ring that Kambosos was “definitely the fight that I would love to make,” calling the former unified lightweight champion the perfect opponent to prove he belongs at the championship level. Before knocking out Bryce Mills in June, Vargas reiterated that stance, telling Sean Zittel, “Since before this fight, I would love the George Kambosos fight.”

Kambosos has not fought in 13 months since suffering an eighth-round knockout loss to Richardson Hitchins. The Australian has lost four of his last six bouts, with many observers also disputing his 2023 majority decision victory over Maxi Hughes.

Emiliano Vargas improved to 18-0 (15 KOs) by stopping Bryce Mills in four rounds on June 27, a performance that further strengthened his position near the top of the WBO rankings. While Fernando Vargas would not confirm Kambosos as the opponent, his latest comments suggest the unbeaten 21-year-old is closing in on the biggest name of his professional career.

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