Gervonta Davis: Five possible opponents for Tank next including Ryan Garcia
- Chris Brannan
- 30 May 2022
At 27, Gervonta Davis has already racked up world titles in three different weight divisions - albeit two of the titles being WBA secondary titles.
The man nicknamed 'Tank' is a dangerous man at 135lbs - and he proved that with a ruthless knockout of Rolly Romero in round six.
Davis - who has been touted as the next Floyd Mayweather by the man himself - had been under the promotional banner of his boxing idol at Mayweather Promotions but is now a free agent after the weekend.
The good news is, it means 'Tank' could be in for a super-fight next and he won't be short of options.
Below we look at five fights for Davis - and all of them are brilliant fights.
Ryan Garcia
This is the big one.
Ryan Garcia has made his intentions clear on wanting the bout with Davis for a while.
'King Ry' even turned down his mandatory position for Devin Haney's WBC title he earnt after his win over Luke Campbell in pursuit of Tank.
Yet due to various injuries as well as mental health problems, the fight has never managed to materialise.
With nearly eight million followers on Twitter, Garcia will bring his huge following. This combined with Davis' loyal fan base will provide huge numbers for the event - giving career high paydays for both fighters.
The likely next step in the career of the 23-year-old is looking to be a bout with Javier Fortuna in July, putting hopes of a contest with Isaac Cruz - only the second fighter to go the full distance with Davis - to bed.
Garcia's promoter Oscar De La Hoya has openly offered Davis a two-fight promotional deal with Garcia-Davis part of the contract.
Vasiliy Lomachenko
Despite his loss to Teofimo Lopez nearly two years ago, many fans believe Vasiliy Lomachenko to be the best 135lb fighter in the division.
Loma was offered the fight down under with George Kambosos for the WBA, WBO and IBF belts before the Ukrainian decided to turn the opportunity down in order to remain and defend his homeland Ukraine against the attack from Russia.
Yet when the 34-year-old does decide to make his return to the sport, he will be looking for a big fight in order to propel himself back into the world title picture now he's entering the tail-end of his career.
With names like Shakur Stevenson, Devin Haney, and George Kambosos Jr in the hat, many believe the fight with Davis to be the most exciting option for the two-time Olympic gold medallist.
The exceptional footwork and boxing fundamentals of Lomachenko mixed with the unpredictable power of 'Tank' will provide the age-old fan favourite contest of the boxer vs the puncher.
Shakur Stevenson
The pair are future pound for pound greats.
Shakur Stevenson has already begun to cement his legacy in boxing with two world titles in as many divisions from 18 fights.
It includes a career best performance over Oscar Valdez at 130lbs to unify the super featherweight division.
The southpaw champion is at a crossroads in his career. Does he continue his journey to undisputed at super featherweight or move up to lightweight for the big fights?
A move to lightweight will provide a world of opportunities for Stevenson, the biggest one being Tank. Just like the Lomachenko clash, it will give fans the boxer vs puncher matchup.
The younger man in Stevenson will undoubtedly give Davis his toughest test yet, and potentially the highest risk matchup on the list which is why it is difficult to see the three-weight world champion wanting to jump into the ring with Stevenson just yet.
Devin Haney
The American is the current WBC champion and has the chance to become undisputed king at lightweight on June 5.
Haney - who faces George Kambosos Jr in Melbourne - is another fun fight for Davis to take.
At 23 years old, Haney is the second youngest current world champion - the youngest being WBC super flyweight champion Jesse Bam Rodriguez.
Picking up the interim belt in 2019 after leaving Zaur Abdullaev retired on his stool, 'The Dream' was soon upgraded to full champion once Lomachenko was made the franchise champion.
Since holding the belt, Haney has made defences against the likes of Yuriorkis Gamboa, Jorge Linares and JoJo Diaz.
🗣 Everyone needs a hype man like @RealDevinHaney’s. #KambososHaney | JUN 4 | ESPN pic.twitter.com/hlKWp0FAEh
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) May 11, 2022
Providing Haney comes through Kambosos on June 5 as well as the rematch contracted if the American wins, then for certain 'Tank' will be calling the name of the new undisputed champion for a huge 135lb clash.
With Haney showing he is willing to change promotors for a fight he wants, recently signing a two-fight deal with Top Rank in order to get the Kambosos fight, then it looks like the pressure will be on Davis to accept the challenge of Haney.
Teofimo Lopez
Teofimo Lopez has experienced the highs and lows of the sport in the last two years.
He became IBF lightweight champion in 2020 after decimating Richard Commey inside two rounds.
Lopez then did the unthinkable and beat Vasyl Lomachenko via unanimous decision to unify the division. However, in his next fight a poor performance saw George Kambosos Jr snare the belts away.
We are yet to see him back in the ring but 140lbs is the weight division he will be fighting at, and Josh Taylor is his number one target for 2023.
