Gervonta Davis entered the Pound for Pound list for the second time in his career this week. However, Tank remains the third-best lightweight in the world.
He currently sits at number ten on the list again. But Davis is still behind undisputed champion Devin Haney and Shakur Stevenson in the pecking order at 135.
Gervonta Davis Pound for Pound
Despite a stunning win over Ryan Garcia in Las Vegas, their achievements eclipse that of Davis. The reason? – Garcia wasn’t even rated in the Pound for Pound Top 50, let alone enough to boost Davis past Haney or Stevenson.
Haney taking all the belts at lightweight sees him ranked at six, behind Oleksandr Usyk, Naoya Inoue, Canelo Alvarez, Errol Spence Jr., and Dmitry Bivol.
Stevenson, who ruled at featherweight and super-featherweight, is above Davis at eight. Therefore, he remains on the coattails of Terence Crawford and Jermall Charlo.
Not a three-weight world champion
Despite big words from Showtime executive Stephen Espinoza to sell the Davis vs Garcia fight, the cold-hard truth is that some of the facts stated were wrong.
Before the fight, Espinoza stated: “‘ Tank’ is a five-time champion in three different weight classes. He has sold out venues in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Baltimore, Brooklyn, and Washington, D.C.
“Three of his last six wins have been one-punch KOs. Eighteen of his previous nineteen opponents have been stopped. The combined record of his last thirteen opponents is 138 wins and twelve losses.
“This is a battle of the two most popular fighters in the U.S. Both are huge draws. Both are coming off awe-inspiring performances.
“‘Tank’ Davis won by TKO over Hector Luis Garcia, and Ryan Garcia last fought in July against former title holder Javier Fortuna.
“This fight is the rising tide that lifts all boats. There is an enthusiasm that permeates everything else. It elevates the level of action.
“This fight is one of the cornerstones of our ambitious 2023 schedule. It’s a battle of the two most popular young fighters in the sport.
Biggest fight
“Two fighters in their athletic prime and two of the most exciting fighters in any weight division. Put that together, and you have the biggest fight on the boxing schedule.
“When a fight this big gets made, there is no shortage of people rushing to take credit. ‘Tank’ Davis and Ryan Garcia deserve the credit for this fantastic event.
“Throughout the long negotiating process, they never wavered. They remained focused, refused to take the easy way out, and took other opportunities.
“They delivered what the sport and the fans wanted.”
Tom Brown added: “Make no mistake, this is a super fight. Furthermore, it’s one of the biggest that can be made in boxing and the best fighting of 2023.
“It’s not often in today’s game that we see two young fighters, both undefeated, both in their prime, step into the ring together.”
World title at 130 pounds
That significant build-up had the fact Gervonta Davis has only won one bonafide title [at 130 pounds] smudged over. Titles in other divisions for the Baltimore man were both “regular” versions.
They certainly cannot get held up to sell a fight of that magnitude. In addition, Davis has to do more at 135 to overtake Haney and Stevenson. Either beat one of them or both to become the face of boxing.
He’s not there yet, in terms of pound-for-pound, but he’s definitely on the right path.
