Tweet
WBA world lightweight champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis (27-0, 25 KOs) and former WBC interim lightweight champion Ryan “KingRy” Garcia (23-0, 19 KOs) have come to terms and will meet in 2023. Both have huge followings on their social media platforms and their showdown is a surefire blockbuster.
Davis, who turned 28 earlier this month and Garcia, 24, have long been waging a war of words on social media. Today, almost simultaneously, they brought the news of their impending showdown to their fans on their Instagram accounts.
This being boxing, there was considerable skepticism as to whether the announcement was true. “Tank” is promoted by Mayweather Promotions which has an arrangement with Showtime via their association with Premier Boxing Champions. Garcia is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions which is affiliated with DAZN. Getting rival networks on the same page has often proved near-impossible as illustrated by the stalemate between the camps of Errol Spence Jr and Terence Crawford.
Qualms that the Davis-Garcia confrontation was a tease that wouldn’t bear fruit were quickly alleviated by Stephen Espinoza, Senior Vice President of Showtime. Espinoza released this statement:
“Tank Davis vs. Ryan Garcia is one of the biggest and most exciting fights that can be made in boxing. We have two supremely talented boxers, both in their prime, who have amassed huge fanbases, meeting in a career defining fight. This is the epitome of a crossover boxing event. All credit to Tank and Ryan for staying the course and giving the fans the fight they want.
Oscar De La Hoya, President of Golden Boy Promotions, confirmed the news on twitter but in cryptic language that alluded to the fact that there remain a number of details to be worked out.
The fight will air Showtime pay-per-view but DAZN will also be involved in some capacity. According to prominent boxing writer Keith Idec, the bout will be scheduled for 12 rounds at a catchweight of 136 pounds and Las Vegas will be the host city. The date and venue have yet to be determined but the best guess is that the fight will take place in April.
Gervonta Davis is committed to a tune-up fight on Jan. 7 in Washington DC against an opponent to be named. Complicating matters, Davis has a court date on Feb. 16 (pushed back from Dec. 12) in Baltimore pertaining to a hit-and-run accident that occurred in the early morning hours of Nov. 5, 2020. According to police reports, Davis’s Lamborghini SUV ran a red light and collided with a Toyota with four occupants including a pregnant woman. Davis and his party left the scene without rendering aid. Three of the passengers in the Toyota have settled civil suits against Davis. A fourth suit is pending.
---
In unrelated news, Jose Pedraza has been forced to pull out of his Dec. 10 engagement with Teofimo Lopez at Madison Square Garden’s Hulu Theater because of an illness and has been replaced by Sandor Martin. A 29-year-old southpaw from Barcelona, Spain, Martin (40-2, 13 KOs) forged the 2021 TSS Upset of the Year when he outpointed Mikey Garcia in Fresno.
The bout will air after the Heisman Trophy award ceremony on ESPN+.