By: Hans Themistode
When Leo Santa Cruz jumped up in weight to win the vacant WBA Super Featherweight world title late last year, he made a bit of history. Only a small group of fighters have ever gone on to become a four division champion. And even a smaller amount has accomplished it in the Mexican community.
Yet, even with another achievement under his belt, he doesn’t exactly receive all the respect that he probably feels he deserves.
The reason? A hole in his resume.
While he may have wins over Abner Mares and Carl Frampton, the fans want to see more. But if everything goes according to plan, he’ll be in the biggest fight of his life very soon.
“The plan is to fight [unbeaten former 130-pound champ Gervonta] Tank Davis. We’re going to fight at 130.I’m not that heavy right now. I’m like 140, 145 now and I am fighting at 130, so I’m not that heavy,” Santa Cruz revealed during a live chat on the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) Facebook page from his Southern California home on Wednesday.
It was the worst kept secret in all of boxing. The two were rumored to be on track for a contest this coming summer, but with COVID-19 placing things on hold, who knows when it could possibly take place.
A date may not be set in stone anymore, but both men want it next.
For Davis, he’s in the same boat as Santa Cruz. He’s clearly got star power written all over him but with no signature wins under his belt, there are still a few questions.
In his last contest, he moved up from 130 to 135 to take on long faded former champion Yuriorkis Gamboa. Sure he scored the knockout win, but he didn’t look impressive. While Davis would like to get comfortable at his new weight class, if he wants a big fight with Santa Cruz, it seems as though his run at 135 will have to be put on pause.
“We’re not going to go up to 135 right now. We want to fight at 130. That’s the plan.”
“135 would be a tough fight because I would be giving away a weight advantage to Tank Davis,” admits Santa Cruz. “I think 130 is our weight and I think I have a great chance there at 130. I’ve been staying in the gym, we’ve been busy. Gervonta is the fight that I want. Hopefully it gets made.”