Gervonta Davis entertained the idea of facing Naoya Inoue in a boxing superfight after the Japanese star’s latest win.
Naoya Inoue remains undefeated in the boxing ring after a dominant win over Ye Joon-Kim in defense of his super bantamweight titles on Friday in Tokyo. After a technical showcase over the first three rounds, Inoue sealed the deal with a knockout in Round 4.
Inoue is regarded by many as one of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world regardless of weight class. While he’s dominated his competition, he hasn’t faced a marquee name to cement himself as a global star, but Davis would fit the bill.
Gervonta Davis, the WBA lightweight champion, would have to sign off on Inoue making a massive weight gain for a potential fight. But that didn’t stop one fan from attempting to get Davis to publically agree to make the champ vs. champ matchup come to fruition.
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Gervonta Davis answers fan’s call for Naoya Inoue super fight
In a since-deleted social media post, Davis responded to one fan who pitched the Inoue fight as ‘a fight boxing fans deserve’.
“I’m the only fighter y’all want to see in the ring with everybody..doesn’t matter the weight! Like wtf,” Davis posted.
As of this writing, Inoue hasn’t responded to Davis’ remarks, nor has he publically entertained potentially moving up for the super fight. Davis would likely have to cut back down to either super-featherweight or featherweight to meet Inou at a fair middle ground.
Despite Davis’ apprehension, Turki Alalshikh named the Inoue fight as one of his ‘dream matchups’ he’d like to attempt to make in boxing. To date, Alalshikh has proven successful in making blockbuster fights come to fruition, including the rumored Terence Crawford vs. Canelo Alvarez pairing.
Gervonta Davis vs. Naoya Inoue is on Turki Alalshikh’s radar
Davis, 30-0, will face Lamont Roach Jr. on March 1st in Brooklyn. He’s teased a potential retirement with a win over Roach, although that could change if other big-name matchups are on the table.
Leading up to the Roach fight, Davis earned recent wins over Frank Martin, Ryan Garcia, and Rolando Romero. He won the then-vacant WBA lightweight belt by knocking out Yuriorkis Gamboa in Dec. 2019.
Davis has also been linked to a potential super fight with Shakur Stevenson in recent weeks amidst differing claims over their past sparring sessions. Stevenson will face Floyd Schofield on February 22nd for the WBC lightweight championship.
Davis also pitched a nine-figure price tag for a potential run-back with Garcia ahead of the latter’s return to the ring. Garcia could be on track for a rematch with Devin Haney if they both win their upcoming fights.
In the meantime, both Davis and Inoue would likely have to make sacrifices to make a dream matchup come to fruition soon. But for now, it appears Davis is focused on his upcoming fight and putting big-money matchups on the shelf.