By: Hans Themistode
It doesn’t matter how many knockout wins Gervonta Davis piles up. Nor does it matter how fat his bank account gets after every explosive win.
The moment he decides to hang up his gloves for good, he’ll quickly be forgotten. Unless, of course, he does one thing and one thing only.
“Gervonta, if you do not take this fight with me you will not be remembered,” said lightweight contender Ryan Garcia during an interview with TMZ Sports. “Your legacy will forever be tainted.”
Garcia’s perpetual call outs of Davis (24-0, 23 KOs) date back several years now. For whatever reason, the 22-year-old has always wanted a piece of the lightweight WBA “Regular” belt holder. While Davis has regurgitated over and over again that Garcia is just too small and too young, his latest performance has seemingly changed his mind.
Just a few days ago, Garcia (21-0, 18 KOs) started his 2021 with a bang. In the main event slot in Dallas, Texas at the American Airlines Center, the California native had his chin checked by Britain’s Luke Campbell. In the second round of a fairly even contest, Campbell landed a left hook that saw Garcia tilt over and hit the deck. To his credit though, he peeled himself off the canvas and stopped his man in the seventh.
The smiles that accompanied his gritty performance may have been from ear to ear but they were also transient.
“I don’t have time for celebrations,” explained Garcia. “I’m on one mission to knock out Gervonta Davis in two rounds. This man will go down. Two rounds, that’s a promise.”
As for Davis, the surly knockout artist has continued to clock out earlier than his 12 round shift intended. In front of a socially distanced crowd at the Alamodome in San Antonio Texas, on Halloween night, the Baltimore native scored a knockout of the year candidate against Leo Santa Cruz in the sixth round.
He’s been mostly mum on the topic of facing Garcia. However, the two division titlist has stated on numerous occasions that he is willing to face anyone.