Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis is set to defend his WBA world lightweight title against Lamont Roach Jr on an Amazon Prime Video pay-per-view show in December.
The captivating star will undoubtedly be looking to put on another statement performance following on from his scintillating eighth-round stoppage over tricky southpaw Frank Martin.
And so, with his next bout seemingly looking likely to land in Houston, Texas, Gervonta Davis will be gearing up for an unexpected clash with Roach, the WBA ‘super’ champ down at 130 lbs.
But while fans are excited to see the explosive talent back in action, several boxing experts have suggested that the 29-year-old is swerving the most formidable contenders in his division.
Paulie Malignaggi blasts Gervonta Davis for taking the fight with Lamont Roach
The WBA confirmed earlier this week that they have granted ‘special permission’ for the matchup between ‘Tank’ and Roach to go ahead.
When the news arrived on September 30, though, it came as something of a surprise given that Roach was set to face his super featherweight mandatory challenger, Albert Batyrgaziev, in the near future.
But the WBA have revealed several conditions that will be in place to ensure that, regardless of the result at the end of this year, both fighters will be compelled to fulfill their championship responsibilities.
Former world champion Paulie Malignaggi, however, is unconvinced that this is the right fight for Davis.
“When you look at the lightweight division from a boxing perspective, why pull up a guy from other weight classes when there are fresh, young lightweights [and] lots of viable fights for [Davis]?,” Malignaggi said on ProBox TV.
“If Roach wins, it’d be the upset of the year. Is that what we want on pay-per-view? This is not a trash fight, [but] Lamont is smaller and lacks the firepower of Gervonta Davis.”
Why is Gervonta Davis not fighting Shakur Stevenson or Vasyl Lomachenko?
Davis teased fans with a social media post on Wednesday, revealing the potential date and location for his next outing.
Like Malignaggi has argued, though, it is somewhat puzzling to see that ‘Tank’ will not be unifying with Shakur Stevenson or Vasyl Lomachanko, two of the other champions at 135 lbs.
The American can be excused for not colliding with Stevenson, who is still nursing an injury he sustained prior to his canceled bout against Joe Cordina.
As for IBF champion Lomachenko, the Ukrainian has been somewhat silent since claiming his vacant title but would, nonetheless, make for an intriguing matchup against Davis.