By Allan Fox: Floyd Mayweather Jr predicts that Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis will put Ryan Garcia to sleep when they fight on April 22nd on DAZN & Showtime PPV at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Mayweather discovered Tank (28-0, 26 KOs) years ago and used his knowledge & popularity to turn the Baltimore, Maryland native into the star he is today in the sport.
After nearly a decade of fighting less popular fighters from 126 to 140, the 28-year-old Gervonta is facing his first semi-star in 24-year-old Ryan Garcia, who is like a hybrid boxer with his massive following on social media.
The Golden Boy-promoted Ryan is the new breed of fighters that is a mix of boxers & social media influencers, making him the ideal marketer for a fight against Tank Davis. Most boxing fans view Ryan as having no chance of winning this fight, so it’s not a shock that Mayweather is picking Tank to win this fight.
What’s interesting about Tank Davis’ popularity is that he’s done it without fighting anybody really good. He’s fought a lot of washed-up old guys and regular contenders. The opposition has been guys that would be wiped out by most decent contenders.
“Ryan hasn’t won a title yet. We don’t talk about no interim belt. That don’t count, and we not taking nothing away from the guy [Javier] Fortuna, but he was just an opponent,” said Floyd Mayweather Jr. to Fighthype about his view of Ryan Garcia not being in the same league as Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis.
“I’m going to have Tank in the best shape of his life, and just know, when he hit that boy, he ain’t going to wake up until next year.”
What confused many fans was Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe showing up for the kickoff press conference for Gervonta and Ryan Garcia. Ellerbe was hanging around Tank, making his status for being there unclear.
Why was Ellerbe there? He should have been kicked off the stage if he’s no longer part of Tank’s team.
This looks like an old video that Fighthype posted, taking advantage of the interest from fans in the Davis vs. Garcia fight without letting fans know that it’s two years old. Even if it were new, the far more experienced Gervonta is the easy pick for this match-up.
Until this fight, Golden Boy hasn’t shown much desire to match Ryan Garcia against quality opposition. It’s unclear whether Ryan has been in control of his match-making or Golden Boy, but it’s more likely the former.
The fact that Ryan wanted no part in fighting Mercito Gesta recently suggests that he’s the one that has been selecting his opposition all these years. Ryan Garcia has a puncher’s chance of beating Tank Davis, but that’s about it.