By Mark Eisner: Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis (29-0, 27 KOs) proved to be too much for the untested, previously unbeaten Ryan Garcia (23-1, 19 KOs), stopping him in the seventh round of a one-sided fight on Saturday night in their headliner at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Tank knocked Ryan down twice, once in round two and another time in round seven. After dropping Ryan, 24, with a body shot in round seven, the fight was stopped after Kingry failed to get back up.
His nose was bleeding, and he looked like he didn’t want anymore. The time of the stoppage was at 1:44 of round seven.
Undercard results:
- The new star of the super middleweight division, WBA ‘regular’ champion David Morrell Jr (9-0, 8 KOs), crushed his replacement opponent, 2012 Olympic bronze medalist Yamaguchi Falcao (24-2-1, 10 KOs), stopping him in the first round of a scheduled twelve round bout in the chief support bout. Morrell knocked Falcao down after trapping him against the ropes. When Falcao got back up, Morrell Jr went for the finish, landing several huge shots that sent the Brazilian down for the second and final time. The fight was stopped by referee Celestino Ruiz at 2:22 of round one.
- Former two-time world title challenger gatekeeper/journeyman Gabe Rosado (26-17-1, 15 KOs) took a 10 round beating, losing his rematch with ‘Bek The Bully’ Bektemir Melikuziev (12-1, 9 KOs) by a one-sided unanimous decision. The scores were 99-91, 99-91, and 99-91. Bektemir looked timid in the first three rounds, seemingly unwilling to let his hands go for fear of being countered. Once he realized Rosado wouldn’t throw anything back, he attacked and punished him with powerful combinations to the head and body from rounds four on. Rosado, 37, had knocked out the prospect Bektemir in the third round in their fight in 2021, but Gabe’s career, such as it is, has gone downhill since, with him losing three consecutive fights before tonight’s rematch. With how Rosado looked tonight, incapable of pulling the trigger on his punches, he must retire.
- Middleweight prospect Elijah Garcia (15-0, 12 KOs) was forced to labor to a tougher than expected ten round unanimous decision win over Kevin Salgado (15-2-1, 10 KOs). The scores were 95-94, 97-92, and 97-92. Salgado lost a point in the seventh round for hitting below the belt. This wasn’t the type of performance the handlers of the 19-year-old Garcia were hoping to get, as it was closer than you’d like to see for someone with his kind of hype. However, Salgado has been around and is a tough hombre.
- Unbeaten middleweight prospect Fiodor Czerkaszyn (22-0, 14 KOs) stopped Elias Espadas (22-6, 15 KOs) in the ninth round of a scheduled ten round bout. The time of the stoppage was at 2:07.
- Junior middleweight Vito ‘White Magic’ Mielnicki Jr (15-1, 10 KOs) stopped Jose Charles (20-4-1, 12 KOs) in the fourth round. Mielnicki Jr knocked Charles down two times in the third and a final time in round four. The contest was then halted by the referee at 0:33. The 20-year-old Mielnicki Jr picked up his seventh straight win since losing to James Martin by an eight round majority decision in 2021.
Preview: Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis vs. Ryan Garcia will battle tonight in a 12-round headliner grudge match on PPV event, starting at 8:00 pm ET at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
We’re going to find out tonight if the weight stipulations have an adverse effect on Ryan Garcia or Tank Davis.
As Billy Haney said, the 136-lb catchweight & 10-lb rehydration clause makes the fight seem more like an exhibition because it’s not a standard contest. The rules have changed, giving Tank Davis what, in effect, is a considerable handicap.
“Ryan Garcia will not see the 12th round”
“There are levels to it. When it comes down to it, Tank Davis is a complete fighter. We know Tank got a chin, but we’re getting ready to find out whether Ryan Garcia has got a chin,” said Leonard Ellerbe to Fighthype.
“I’ve seen him [Ryan] on the canvas with a light-hitting Luke Campbell. The game plan that coach Calvin [Ford] and Kenny [Ellis] have for Tank is one you don’t want to miss, and you don’t want to miss it from the opening bell.
“Don’t be surprised if Ryan Garcia gets knocked out in the first round. First off, this is a different kind of fight. This is for everything. It means everything to Tank and coach Calvin and coach Kenny. Tank has an entire city behind him. He’s representing a culture.
“He knows what this means, and he worked really hard to put himself in this situation. The talk is over. He’s [Gervonta] ready to go. Ryan has talked that talk. Now we’re going to see what he’s going to do.
“One of the biggest mistakes he’s made is he’s been inactive,” said Ellerbe about Ryan Garcia not often fighting since his fight with Luke Campbell in January 2021. “Tank has been active. Whoever he was going to fight,” said Leonard when asked if Ryan should have taken the fight against Mercito Gesta.
“Listen, this is what it comes down to. You’ve got one guy that has been busy. Tank has been a killer. He’s active, and he’s ready to go. He’s going to run his [Ryan] a** right out of the ring. I promise you that. Ryan Garcia will not see the 12th round.”
“Tanks a great fighter, he knows what he’s doing in the ring, but I feel my skills are something you can’t see on Saturday night,” said Ryan Garcia to ESPN. “I wouldn’t be where I am right now if I didn’t have no skills, but you don’t know until your there.
“The truth,” said Ryan when asked what he wants his fans to see tonight in his fight against Gervonta. “We’ve both been saying a lot of things, but I just want the truth to play out. That’s it.”
Tank rejects villain role
“He’s been trying to make me out as the villain this whole time, but it’s okay; it’s cool. It’s part of boxing. We got someone like Oscar or Ryan, who want to play this good boy role,” said Gervonta.
“It’s going to do a lot for boxing. I can already see how it’s moving,” said Ryan when asked how his fight with Tank would affect boxing. “Everybody is going to want to fight each other, and we’re going to get big moments after this fight. They’re going to be inspired by this event.
“I’m proud of that; I’m happy that boxing is going to be going in the right direction. I’m going to put work on Gervonta. He knows that. He’s going to be surprised in that ring, and he’s going to get caught, and before you know, it’s over. That’s it,” said Ryan.
“Surprised about what? What am I going to be surprised about, brother?” said Gervonta to Ryan.
“You’re going to come back, ‘Damn, I was surprised,'” said Ryan.
“You’re cursing,” said Tank. “You’re being a bad guy!”
“You’ve done a lot worse than cursing,” said Ryan to Gervonta.
“You been cursing, you been lying. That don’t go with your role, man,” said Tank, scolding Ryan for using bad words.