Updated:
Apr 23, 2023 5:12 pm
Gervonta Davis proved why he is one of the hottest talents in boxing by knocking out Ryan Garcia in the 7th round and dominating the majority of the contest.
In the build-up to the fight Garcia appeared extremely confident that he would emerge victorious and his self-belief was evident in the first round. ‘King Ryan’ started brightly by popping out his jab and forcing Davis to box on the back foot.
And in the second round, Garcia felt encouraged to start letting his hands go and showcase his blistering hand speed, which seemed to trouble ‘Tank’. But this success was short-lived, as Gervonta Davis landed his signature straight left hand that sent Garcia down to the canvas.
Garcia did not seem hurt, but from that point onwards the 24-year-old was a lot more wary of throwing combinations. This resulted in Davis racking up the next three rounds with ease by out-landing and outboxing his younger and less experienced opponent.
However, in round six, Garcia regained some confidence and was able to land some flush right hands on the chin of Davis, who showed a sturdy chin.
Garcia’s success briefly continued in the seventh round until he was caught by another destructive left hand. This time, Gervonta Davis connected with a brutal body shot to Garcia’s liver. Ryan Garcia retreated backwards and took a knee before failing to beat the referees count.
Indeed, Gervonta Davis became the first man to hand Garcia a loss in the pro ranks while improving his undefeated record to 29 wins with 27 knockouts. ‘Tank’ now boasts a 93.1% knockout ratio and has won via stoppage or KO in his last three bouts.
Gervonta Davis Reflects on Ryan Garcia Win
At the post-fight press conference Gervonta Davis remained coy as to who he could potentially fight next. Davis, the current WBA (Regular) lightweight champion, has been linked with other world class fighters such as Devin Haney and Shakur Stevenson.
“We just got to go back to the drawing board and see what the best decision is for my career.”
Haney is the undisputed lightweight champion and is set to face Vasyl Lomachenko on May 20th at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas. Therefore, it is possible that Davis could fight the winner for all the belts.
Nevertheless, Davis paid homage to Ryan Garcia who he regards as the toughest opponent of his career so far.
“I would probably say he’s the best fighter, definitely. We were going off each others energy in there. We were actually talking in there and it was fun while it lasted. I enjoyed every moment of it.”
However, ‘Tank’ Davis maintains that he was always in control of the fight and was never seriously hurt by any of Garcia’s punches.
“It’s boxing. He probably caught me with a good shot. There were no shots that caught me today and I felt like I was in trouble. I just stayed calm. I felt like he was more anxious than me. When you have somebody like that you want to stay calm at all costs because you don’t want to make a bad decision and that’s what he did.
“He came in, he was rushing and then he ran into a shot. So I knew off the get-go I don’t want to be that. I want to stay calm and stay collective and stay humble in the fight. And that’s what I was doing, picking my shots.”
Still only 28 years old, Gervonta Davis is regarded by many as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world. And after capturing multiple world titles in different weight divisions, ‘Tank’ has plenty of options as to who he could fight next. Despite currently campaigning at 135 lbs, moving back down to 130 or going up to 140 is the not beyond the realms of possibility.
