Gervonta “Tank” Davis is one of the fastest rising stars in boxing and on May 28 he’ll headline his fourth pay-per-view when he faces bitter rival Rolando Romero.
Davis is a three-division world champion with an exceptional record of 26-0 with 24 wins coming by way of knockout. He’s also the current WBA (Regular) lightweight champion.
Although Davis possesses a sparkling record and knockout percentage, a look under the hood could leave more questions than answers as to just how good “Tank” really is.
BoxRec currently has Davis ranked #16 on its pound-for-pound list. However, running through his opponents leaves some serious questions that extend beyond that sparkling 26-0 record.
Gervonta Davis opponents and previous fights
The most accomplished opponent Davis faced was Leo Santa Cruz. Davis delivered a devastating sixth-round knockout against the four-division world champion in October 2020 that genuinely put the boxing world on notice.
But Santa Cruz wasn’t quite the fighter he once was heading into that bout and was fighting above his natural weight in the lightweight division after spending his career campaigning at featherweight, bantamweight and super bantamweight. Santa Cruz has never been known as a big puncher and combining that with fighting at a higher weight posed little physical threat to Davis.
The same could be said for Yuriorkis Gamboa, who Davis finished with a brutal uppercut in the 12th round of their 2019 clash. Gamboa was at his proper weight but his best years were clearly behind him. Not to mention that a leg injury hobbled Gamboa in the second round and he still managed to get to the final frame.
Davis’s last outing against Isaac Cruz — a fighter few knew of beforehand — surprisingly went the distance and left some questioning afterwards just how good “Tank” really is.
Nevertheless, Davis took care of both Gamboa and Santa Cruz with devastating knockouts that went viral. As for Cruz, that fight may have been a case of the Mexican fighter being much better than many had assumed. Especially when you consider that Cruz demolished Francisco Vargas and Diego Magdaleno before he fought Davis and followed his first loss as a pro with an absolute obliteration of Gamboa in April.
Could this all mean that Davis isn’t quite as good as advertised?
Not necessarily.
Gervonta Davis stats in key fights
Despite the weight difference, Santa Cruz had never been stopped in his professional career until he met Davis in a boxing ring. Gamboa had picked up four victories in a row before getting knocked out in the final round by Tank. As a matter of fact, Davis has made a habit out of being the first knockout loss for plenty of professional boxers.
Of his 24 knockouts, 11 have been against opponents who had never suffered a knockout loss until they faced Davis. No matter how many ways you try to slice it, that is impressive. The power is real. He’s also beaten 19 opponents who had never lost prior to facing him. He’s shown that he doesn’t have to rely solely on his power to win fights. Make no bones about it, he’s supremely talented.
Davis’ explosive offense certainly passes the eye test and will be a tough nut for his opponents to crack but what happens when he gets hit by a real puncher? That’s something we have yet to find out. Of his 26 opponents, only three have knockout percentages over 70%. It could be a mere coincidence but is there a reason that Davis hasn’t fought a big puncher in his career?
Oftentimes, the truly defining moment of a fighter is how they do when they are faced with adversity. We’ve seen many of the all-time greats get cracked one good time, find themselves on the edge of defeat and pull out the victory. Davis hasn’t had that moment in his career…yet.
Where does Gervonta Davis rank among best pound-for-pound boxers?
A victory over Romero doesn’t do much for him in terms of improving his status as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters on the planet. Considering that Romero lacks experience and quality opposition, the only thing for Tank to gain in this fight is bragging rights against someone he simply doesn’t like.
That is fine and all, but the lightweight division and junior welterweight divisions are packed with talent that includes the likes of Devin Haney, George Kambosos, Teofimo Lopez, Vasiliy Lomachenko, Ryan Garcia, Regis Prograis, Jose Ramirez and others. All of the aforementioned names have faced at least one quality opponent while Davis has managed to become a budding superstar with a resume that is weaker than his peers.
But perhaps the grooming period is over and Davis will get a chance to take out all of the big names at 135 and 140 pounds. He’ll have to get past Romero first and then there will be no more excuses for Tank to not face the biggest names at lightweight or junior welterweight.
