Richardson Hitchins will make his first defense of the IBF junior welterweight title one week earlier than initially planned.

The Ring has learned representatives for Brooklyn’s Hitchins and Australia’s George Kambosos Jr. have reached an agreement for them to fight June 14 in a 12-round main event DAZN will stream worldwide. Promoter Eddie Hearn – whose company, Matchroom Boxing, represents Hitchins and co-promotes Kambosos with DiBella Entertainment – and DAZN changed the original date discussed from June 21 because WBA lightweight champ Gervonta Davis is expected to meet Lamont Roach in their immediate rematch June 21.

Hitchins, 27, and Kambosos, 31, will fight for Hitchins’ title in The Theater at Madison Square Garden. That New York venue is where Kambosos, the IBF’s No. 3 contender for Hitchins’ title, upset unified lightweight champ Teofimo Lopez by split decision in their 12-rounder in November 2021.

Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs) won his IBF belt by beating another Australian, Liam Paro, by split decision in their 12-rounder December 7 at Roberto Clemente Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The taller, skillful Hitchins, who represented Haiti at the 2016 Summer Olympics, will be a sizable favorite to beat Kambosos as well.

Puerto Rico’s Subriel Matias, whom Paro upset by unanimous decision to win the IBF belt last June 15, is the IBF’s No. 1 contender in the 140-pound division. Matias (22-2, 22 KOs) is likely to participate in a non-title fight sometime in July against an opponent to be determined.

Sydney’s Kambosos (22-3, 10 KOs) is ranked two spots below Matias and one position above Paro (25-1, 15 KOs). Kambosos is just 2-3 since he dethroned Lopez, but he definitively defeated countryman Jake Wylie (16-2, 15 KOs, 1 NC) on points in his most recent match March 22 at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney.

Kambosos’ three aforementioned defeats were a pair of lopsided points losses to former undisputed lightweight champ Devin Haney (31-0, 15 KOs, 1 NC) and an 11th-round, technical-knockout to three-division champion champ Vasiliy Lomachenko (18-3, 12 KOs).

Paro, who has lost only to Hitchins, is ranked fourth by the IBF. The No. 2 spot in the IBF’s junior welterweight ratings is vacant.

Hitchins is ranked No. 2 among The Ring’s junior welterweight contenders for Lopez (21-1, 13 KOs), who owns The Ring and WBO belts. Paro is ranked sixth by The Ring, Matias is rated seventh and Kambosos is not listed in its top 10 contenders within the 140-pound division.