After more than two years away, Gervonta “Tank” Davis returns to the East Coast for his next fight.
Davis is officially set to defend his WBA lightweight title on March 1 against reigning WBA lowerweight champion, super featherweight Lamont Roach, Premier Boxing Champions announced Friday afternoon. Davis vs. Roach headlines a “PBC on Prime Video” pay-per-view from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Davis (30-0, 28 KOs) and Roach (25-1-1, 10 KOs) have engaged in a war of words on social media since their fight was first teased in October, which they will undoubtedly continue when they present themselves. -face-to-face for the first time on December 3 during a launch press conference in New York.
The two were originally scheduled to fight in December, but the fight was pushed back.
“Tank” previously headlined at the Barclays Center in May 2022 when he stopped Rolando Romero to retain the secondary version of his WBA strap.
Davis became one of the biggest attractions in American boxing after his seventh-round stoppage against Ryan Garcia in a colossal clash in April 2023. The fight sold more than 1.2 million pay-per-views and generated $22.8 million in ticket sales, making it – at the time – the biggest fight in American boxing since the first Saul “Canelo” Alvarez vs. Gennadiy Golovkin match in 2017.
Legal issues forced Davis into a 14-month absence after his career-best win against Garcia, but he returned to Las Vegas against Frank Martin in June. The undefeated Martin was competitive throughout the fight until Davis produced a spectacular knockout in the eighth round.
Roach’s only career loss came in 2019, when he first fought for the WBO world title, losing a competitive decision to Jamel Herring. He won his second attempt last November, winning a split decision over Hector Luis Garcia on the David Benavidez vs. Demetrius Andrade undercard to win the WBA super featherweight belt.
A native of Washington DC, Roach has also fought just once in 2024, stopping an outmatched Feargal McCrory in his return home in June.
Many voices within boxing have expressed disappointment that Davis will not face a big name at 135 pounds. The 30-year-old man was supposed to fight Vasiliy Lomachenko for his second fight in 2024, Lomachenko has however decided not to fight again in 2024.
Matchups with Lomachenko or Shakur Stevenson remain enticing for Davis in 2025. Garcia recently told Uncrowned that he would also set up a rematch with Davis.which would be extremely lucrative.
