Gervonta Davis has announced his next fight, meaning he’s back on social media and taking no prisoners.
The big hitter from Baltimore was elevated to full WBA Lightweight World Champion earlier this year when Devin Haney vacated his titles to move up to the 140 pounds division. ‘Tank’s first defence was an emphatic stoppage over Frank Martin, adding a 28th knockout to his 30 fight winning record.
Post-fight, he entered talks for a unification bout with Vasiliy Lomachenko but the Ukrainian later pulled out to take the rest of the year off. A long-awaited fight with WBC Champ Shakur Stevenson didn’t materialise either, and Davis now finds himself facing old amateur rival Lamont Roach Jr, currently a super-featherweight titleholder but moving up.
With that fight now confirmed for December 14 at the Toyota Centre in Houston, Texas, many have criticised the matchmaking. That includes Haney, who laughed at the bout when it was first rumoured.
The rivalry – which hasn’t yet made it to the ring – has now been fuelled by Davis, who responded to a fan claiming he would never be undisputed at lightweight with the following:
“Your boy will never be mentally stable again.”
Haney has made the headlines recently for bringing a lawsuit to Ryan Garcia’s door after the latter tested positive for a banned substance twice during their fight week.
Garcia has initially beaten Haney, knocking him down three times on the way to a unanimous decision, but the result has since been overturned by the New York State Athletic Commission and a one-year ban issued to the guilty party.
Many in the sport have branded Haney’s lawsuit a bad move, whereas others believe those who test positive deserve all they can get. ‘Tank’ – who stopped Garcia in 2023 – appears to fall into the former camp.
