WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis began training for his title defense in 56 days against Lamont Roach on March 1 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Tank (30-0, 28 KOs) is working hard on his conditioning, knowing that Roach (25-1-1, 10 KOs) will be someone who won’t be easy to knock out. He will most likely have to go into the later rounds against Roach, 29, before he gets the break.
Weight is not a problem
Gervonta already looks in good shape, with a low weight, almost at fighting weight. When you compare his looks to fighters like Keyshawn Davis, it’s like night and day.
Keyshawn looks like a big welterweight during his camps, but he’s somehow slimmed down to 135. Tank is naturally light and not a bully trying to game the system. Tank’s longtime trainer Calvin Ford was nowhere to be found, leading some to wonder if he had parted ways.
“I can understand where he’s coming from. Things are different when you have children. It changed your life. It completely changes your life,” Leonard Ellerbe told Laboratory with Plazatalking about Gervonta Davis’ decision to retire after three more fights.
“He looks at things differently than six or seven years ago. If he said so [he’s retiring] and we’ve all heard it. No, not at all. What you do is never good enough, and sometimes it can be frustrating.
“There is more to life than something you do for a living. You have respect for the fans who pay their money to see you fight, but you have a life outside of boxing. They want you to keep doing it, and they really don’t care about your health after that.
Tank Davis may see many fighters breathing for him, such as Andy Cruz, Edwin De Los Santos and Keyshawn Davis. He may not feel confident that he can beat all or any of them. If he thinks he can win, he knows it’s going to be a tough fight for him and he might not want to try.
“Boxing is a brutal sport. You see a lot of fighters from before; they have been used in many different ways. They’ve been through a lot of health issues, a lot of permanent things. I understand the philosophy that you come into the sport and make your mark, and then you quit. Everyone’s opinion is different and everyone has different goals in life,” Ellerbe said.
It will be interesting to see if Tank’s retirement is permanent or if he returns after six to twelve months when he gets bored or is offered a lot of money for a certain fight. Gervonta is so popular that it’s hard not to see someone offer him a huge amount of money for a big fight, and he agrees to take it.
