On Daily Routines, we profile successful leaders, entrepreneurs, artists, executives and athletes to explore their routines, schedules, habits and day in the life.
George Kambosos Jr was 16-years old when he watched, along with the rest of the boxing world, Manny Pacquiao defeat Miguel Cotto via technical knockout in 2009. It was one of the greatest performances in a boxing career filled with transcendent achievements. As young Kambosos Jr watched the Filipino fighter raise his hands in victory, he had no idea just how closely their paths would merge.
From a young 12-year-old kid when we started this journey, 100 amateur fights later and 18 professional fights, it’s been a long journey. There have been a lot of lonely nights, early mornings, a lot of blood, sweat and tears but we are nearly there.
George ‘Ferocious’ Kambosos Jr- Primed and ready to unleash | Greek City Times
Born in Australia to Greek parents who migrated from Sparta, Kambosos was raised in the southern suburbs of Sydney. As a young kid he played junior rugby league for the Gymea Gorillas, but was often bullied for his weight so his father, Kambosos Sr, enrolled him into boxing classes at the age of 11. He quickly found his love for the sport and started his boxing journey by the time he was a teenager.
After amassing close to 100 wins in his amateur career, the Australian boxer turned professional, adopting the nickname ‘Ferocious’, and made his debut in 2013 at 19 years old, facing off against Filipino fighter Jayson Mac Gura who he defeated via a second round technical knockout.
From there, Kambosos Jr steadily built up a strong boxing resume, including the WBA Oceania lightweight title and WBA-PABA lightweight title, until one day in 2017 he was approached by Manny Pacquiao’s head trainer Freddie Roach. The Filipino boxer and senator was preparing for his fight against Australian boxer Jeff Horn and wanted Kambosos Jr on their side as a sparring partner.
It wasn’t long before he was in the Philippines meeting his boxing idol in the middle of the ring. The two had a great sparring session with both getting in their fair share of strong punches. Kambosos’ performance would earn him the legend’s respect.
“George worked harder than anyone in the camp,” Pacquiao would later tell The Sydney Morning Herald. “I think that is why we got along so well. He would be right there with me running the hills every morning, doing sit-ups next to me after the run, full workouts in the gym every afternoon. He was always doing the extra work. He never cut corners on himself, and it was that work ethic that showed me he had the drive to do what so few in boxing can, and that is to become a world champion.”
Training with the legendary Filipino boxer undoubtedly made Kambosos a better fighter. “With him, he does his pad work, his sparring, but then he’s on the bag, on the shadow boxing, he’s there doing the pad work,” Kambosos recalled. “The extra rounds just builds that conditioning and that stamina. I just found that [if you] push more rounds, if the body can keep going, then push more and more. That’s what I learned from him.”
At the beginning of 2021, less than three years after getting tapped by Pacquiao, Kambosos would beat the undefeated Teófimo López via split decision to become the new unified lightweight world champion.
It’s like no other sport. You just can’t compare. The dedication and the sacrifice that comes from this sport, is unbelievable.
George ‘Ferocious’ Kambosos Jr- Primed and ready to unleash | Greek City Times

George Kambosos Jr’s training routine & diet
During a typical training camp day, Kambosos puts in two to three workout sessions. Leading up to his fight with Lopez, the Australian boxer did an interview with Maxim and took readers through his daily training routine.
A normal training day for me would feel like torture for the average person. I put my body through hell two or three times a day to be ready for whatever my opponent brings on fight night. My mornings start at around 6a.m. where I go for my morning 10km roadwork, followed by ab and core workouts. I then recover and fuel on nutritious foods for my 12p.m. boxing session, which usually goes for two-and-a-half hours. It includes shadow boxing, pad work, bag work, sparring and game planning followed by more ab and core workouts. Rest and more nutritious food follows before my final session of the day, which is strength and conditioning. These workouts vary from conditioning circuits, power lifts, explosive lifts, compound lifts, fitness circuits and speed and agility. By the end of the final training session I rest, fuel up with dinner and, depending on how sore my body is, I do a recovery session of ice and epsom salt baths, infrared sauna and sports massages. Then I get some quality sleep before waking up early to go through the brutal sessions and preparation all over again.
The Ferocious Fighter | Maxim
When it comes to his diet, Kambosos follows a strict high protein and complex carb diet to ensure he’s able to make the 135 lb (61.3 kgs) limit for the lightweight division. His daily meal plan includes staples like chicken, turkey, fish, brown rice and grains, while staying away from junk like chocolates, sweets, soft drinks, cakes, pastries, and takeaway.
“I also have a lot of fruit and vegetables because they’re great for keeping the weight down but consist of many beneficial nutritious values, too,” he told Maxim. “I drink a lot of alkaline water to stay fully hydrated. All the clean eating and lots of water, alongside my vigorous training routine manages my weight pinpoint perfect.”
After he became the unified lightweight world champion, Kambosos faced off against American boxer Devin Haney in June 2022 and suffered a dominating defeat, losing all his titles in the process. With a rematch scheduled for October the same year, the former world champion has made drastic lifestyle changes to win his belts back, moving away from his wife and three kids to live in the gym. Besides a mattress, TV, some boxing videos and a few books, Kambosos has stripped away everything else in his life to focus on his mission.
“I’ve been here four-and-a-half weeks now. I’ve had a lot of peace and quiet. I have my bed upstairs and the gym is downstairs,” Kambosos told The Daily Telegraph. “I will visit my wife and kids some days, have dinner together as a family, then I go back to the gym, lonely and cold in the dark and ready for work the next day.”
Before you go…
Check out more daily routines from Barack Obama, Arianna Huffington, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Michelle Obama, Sheryl Sandberg, Richard Branson, Warren Buffet and plenty others.