On Saturday, May 28th, Gervonta "Tank" Davis defeated Rolando "Rollie" Romero via 6th round technical knockout. Davis caught Rollie with a vicious left hook as Romero was coming in, causing him to fall forward into the ropes. Romero did get to his feet but his legs were not steady and the referee stopped the fight. Davis is now 27-0 with 25 wins by way of knockout.
A record like that usually lands you in the top ten on pound for pound lists but Davis has not taken on the best competition in his career. The best name on his resume is Jose Pedraza who he fought over five years ago. You can make a case for Leo Santa Cruz being a better name but he is a naturally smaller fighter who moved up in weight to take on Tank.
It has been rumored that Gervonta Davis' fight against Rolando Romero was his last for Mayweather Promotions and now he will move on promoting himself or sign with a different company. I hope he only signs short team deals from this point forward, giving him the flexibility to fight whoever he wants. There should be nothing stopping him from taking on the best of the best. So, who should he fight next?
Ryan Garcia
Photo courtesy of Boxing Scene
Ryan Garcia is a rising star in boxing who has a huge social media following that includes almost nine million followers on Instagram. Garcia is 22-0 with 18 wins by way of knockout. This is a very exciting match-up of knockout artists. Tank has established himself as a Pay-Per-View star. The combination of Davis' and Garcia's popularity will lead to a big money opportunity for both fighters. Ryan Garcia is set to take on Javier Fortuna on July 16th, if he takes care of business and wins that fight. Garcia vs Davis would be perfect for late 2022 or early 2023 and the winner will be in line for a title shot against the winner of George Kambosos Jr vs Devin Haney.
Vasyl Lomachenko
Photo via CBS Sports
Vasyl Lomachenko is currently 16-2 with 11 wins by way of knockout. Lomachenko was set to fight George Kambosos Jr for the undisputed lightweight title but decided to pass on the fight as he stayed in his home country of Ukraine due to the situation going on with Russia. Hopefully that situation is resolved soon and he is able to get back to boxing. If he able to come back for later this year. A match-up against Gervonta Davis would be huge. Its another match-up where the winner is the next in line for a title fight. The clash of styles would make this a very fun match-up to preview and watch.
Teofimo Lopez
Photo provided by Boxing Scene
Teofimo Lopez is the former unified champion at 135 pounds. He lost his titles to George Kambosos Jr, last year. Lopez is now 15-1 with 12 wins by way of knockout. Lopez will be looking for a big time fight to get him back into the title picture. It may not be at 135 but even at 140, he needs a big win to put himself back in that upper echelon of boxing rankings. This would be a great match-up of power punchers who can also box at a technically high level.
Regis Prograis
Photo courtesy of Chron
Regis Prograis is 27-1 with 23 wins by of knockout. Prograis has not had a high profile fight since he lost to Josh Taylor in 2019. Gervonta Davis has fought at 140 pounds before, defeating Mario Barrios via 11th round TKO in 2021. This is a major bout where the winner will be in line for a title bout at 135 or 140 or maybe 147 in the case of Prograis, if he decided to move up. Another fight where both fighters have power and can also box at a high level.
Shakur Stevenson
Photo via Bad Left Hook
Shakur Stevenson is currently 18-0 with 9 wins by way knockout. He is the top dog at 130 pounds but may be looking to move up to 135, as there are no big time fights for him at 130, unless he wants to become undisputed. If he moves up to 135, a win over Gervonta Davis puts him right in the title picture. This would be a very interesting match-up as you have the defensive master Stevenson going against the incredible knockout artist in Davis.
There are several options for Gervonta Davis at this point because of his popularity and success as a Pay-Per-View draw. If Davis' next fight isn't against a top guy at 130,135, or 140 pounds, there will be questions from fans like myself when it comes to his heart and willingness to go against the best. If he wants the pound for pound respect of others with records like his, we need to see him fight against the top guys.