Gervonta Davis has become the latest punchline in the boxing world—a textbook case of being fraud-checked. For years, critics have questioned his resume, pointing to the absence of Hall of Fame-caliber opponents and suggesting his record was carefully curated to maintain his undefeated streak. But when Lamont Roach Jr. unexpectedly shattered that illusion, it seemed like the carefully constructed facade crumbled like a house of cards.
If you didn’t know, ‘Tank’ Davis failed to deliver his signature performance against ‘The Reaper’ last Saturday in New York. To the shock of everyone, Roach Jr. approached the fight with a sound strategy. He didn’t show his cards in the early rounds of the fight, which Davis always uses to asses his opponents, just to step on it come round six or seven.
However, in Roach Jr.’s case, the WBA super featherweight champion didn’t fold under the pressure and went blow for blow with Davis. Roach even managed to rock Davis on multiple occasions. Still, the most important part of the fight was when Roach landed a punch on Davis in the ninth round, and Davis decided to take a knee.
Immediately after, the Baltimore Bruiser ran to his corner to get his face wiped off, which later was revealed to be grease irritating his eyes. The knee incident was ruled a non-knockdown by referee Steve Willis, which prevented Roach Jr. from getting the upper hand over Davis, ultimately affecting the results of the fight. The bout ended with a majority decision draw.
While the NYSAC is looking into the knockdown, with Roach Jr. urging the commission to rule in his favor, the entire situation seems to have earned ‘Tank’ Davis a new nickname, one he would definitely not appreciate. During the latest episode of ProBox TV, Paulie Malignaggi and Chris Algieri sat down to discuss the fight.
When the host asked Algieri about what would be the next step for Davis, Malignaggi jumped in to suggest, “He’s ‘Stank’ until he fights good. From now on, he’s ‘Stank.’ He’s not ‘Tank,’ he’s ‘Stank.’” As for what the next step for Davis would be, Algieri explained it best.
Chris Algieri puts the final nail in the next step for Gervonta Davis after the Lamont Roach Jr. fight
It’s worth mentioning that while Davis seemed iffy about a rematch initially, the controversy surrounding their fight prompted the 30-year-old to claim that he would pursue a rematch against Lamont Roach Jr. Regardless, Algieri claims, “If there’s not an immediate rematch, then ‘Tank’ just don’t want to fight.”
Algieri explained that he wouldn’t be surprised if Davis doesn’t choose to rematch Roach because “The un-comfortability I saw from Tank in the second half of that fight—that made me think, I’m like, he’s not fighting this guy again. He’s going to get this win and move on. But he didn’t get the win.”
Malignaggi jumped in again, suggesting Davis wasn’t just uncomfortable in the later half. “There was discomfort in the first few rounds,” he said. “That shoulder barge, that’s out of the ordinary, bro. That’s frustration.” Amid all the speculation, it’s still unclear what Gervonta Davis intends to do next.
That said, it appears Gervonta Davis’ time as the top dog in boxing is coming to a screeching halt. Unless he defeats Lamont Roach Jr. decisively in a rematch and matches against the best in the division, he will always have a chip on his shoulder. Regardless, what do you think of Davis’ new nickname?
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