By Dan Ambrose: Keith Thurman thinks Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis is taking a big risk in moving up two weight classes to challenge Mario Barrios for his WBA ‘regular light welterweight title on June 26th at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta.
Even if Barrios (26-0, 17 KOs) isn’t on par with undisputed 140-lb champion Josh Taylor or former WBC/WBO champ Jose Ramirez, he’s still an excellent fighter and is one of the best in the division.
Tank Davis (24-0, 23 KOs) moves up from 135 to take on WBA secondary 140-lb champion Barrios.
Some boxing fans view Barrios as the weakest link among the champions at light welterweight. Other fans say Barrios is a paper champion, but all you can really say is he’s the #2 guy behind Josh Taylor.
With that said, there are arguably better contenders than Barrios. I’m talking about these fighters:
- Jose Ramirez
- Regis Prograis
- Viktor Postol
- Jose Zepeda
- Gary Antuanne Russel
- Shakhram Giyasov
Thurman: Tank Davis is playing with fire
“I’ve heard of him, I haven’t seen a lot of him, and I’ve heard a lot of people like him,” said Keith Thurman to Fighthype about Mario Barros.
“We all love Tank. We know he’s very talented. People before him [Gervonta] have already done those kinds of jumps and feats, and he probably thinks, ‘I’ve got those same talents if not more than these individuals had, so I believe I can accomplish the same thing.’
“I love Tank, but the moment the little man moves up, it’s like playing with fire or turning up the heat in the kitchen,” said Thurman.
It’s not that he can’t take the heat, but if he’s skipping weight classes, he’s definitely turning the heat up. He’s demanding more of himself, and I look forward to how he performs,” said Thurman.
Tank could be playing with fire because he’s tiny, and his fighting style will leave him vulnerable to the heavy shots from the 5’10” Barrios.
If Barrios can stay in there until the second half of the fight, he could do a lot of damage to Tank. Going life and death with the secondary WBA champion will cause Tank to lose credibility with fans. Even if Tank does win, he’s going to be seen as being exposed.
Davis promising a fight to remember
“We all challenge ourselves to be great as a fighter, and that’s basically what I’m doing, challenging myself,” said Gervonta to Brian Custer’s Last Stand Podcast.
“If that’s the case, that might push him in training camp so he won’t take no L. It’s about giving the fans what they want, which is an action-packed fight.
“He’s bigger. He’s stronger. He’s taller. He’s got a longer arm reach. I don’t know, but it’s definitely going to be a fight to remember,” said Tank Davis when asked if he’s going to be looking for his 16th consecutive knockout on June 26th against Barrios.
“I’m definitely looking to put on a great performance; that’s what makes for a great PPV star. He’s another test I got to go through, and on June 26th, there’s definitely going to be fireworks,” said Tank.
If Tank wants to impress the boxing public with his performance, he will need to knock Barrios out because the fans already see him as a paper champion with WBA secondary belt at 140.
The only way Tank is going to be given a shred of credit from the fans is if he goes out and totally obliterates Barrios, and it’s unclear if his power will carry that far.
