George Kambosos Jr has hit out at "rat" Devin Haney by accusing him of leaking information about his previous rival, Teofimo Lopez.
Kambosos Jr will make a maiden defence of his lightweight titles against challenger Haney this weekend in his native Australia. He will return to the ring for the first time since picking up shock victory over Lopez to steal his crown last year.
The 28-year-old has claimed Lopez will be on the "lookout" to find Haney after the fight and believes his rival should be barred from the country. "I really don't know how they let this guy into the country, to be honest. I didn't think they let informants into the country," Kambosos Jr said at the press conference.
"This guy is an informant, this guy is a rat. I'll tell you why, because in the Teofimo Lopez fight against a foreigner, his own countryman, he was messaging me, telling me all the details, every bit.
"Teofimo at the hookah lounge, Teofimo having problems with his wife. This is a rat, this is a rat, this is a snitch, this is an informant. Your own countryman and you're going behind his back. So you know what? On Sunday, I am going to whip your a** and you know when you get back to Las Vegas? You'll be on the lookout for Teofimo Lopez. Because he'll be looking for you too."
Haney was composed in his response, firing back: "A rat? What are you talking about? Do you know the definition of a rat? What was the consequence? I had both sides of it. If he won, I would fight Teo. If you win, I would fight you. This is a dream of mine… I wasn't going to turn it down for nothing."
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The American will be without his father Bill in his corner on Saturday night as he not granted a visa to enter Australia because of a drug conviction in the 1990s. He will instead be trained by Yoel Judah, who is the father of former champion Zab Judah.
Haney defeated JoJo Diaz late last year to pick up his 27th professional victory and continue his mean streak which also includes wins over Jorge Linares and Yuriorkis Gamboa. The 23-year-old believes his upcoming opportunity is the "SuperBowl" of the lightweight division and plans to have his hand raised.
"This opportunity means everything to me, this is the Super Bowl of the lightweight division, the biggest fight in the lightweight division, this means everything and I'll take full advantage of it," Hane y told Sky Sports. "There are many ways, there are many holes and different ways we can beat him, but the one game-plan we have we really feel like it will work. But you never know until you get in the ring. We're ready for anything, anything he brings to the table we'll be ready for and I can't wait."
