WBA Places Gervonta Davis in Recess, Opens Door at 135

Gervonta “Tank” Davis is no longer the WBA’s active lightweight champion.

The sanctioning body has formally designated Davis as its “champion in recess” at 135 pounds, a move that allows the division to move forward while his legal situation remains unresolved. The decision follows the execution of an arrest warrant by police in Miami Gardens, Florida, connected to an alleged incident from October. With that step, the WBA has ended Davis’ status as its primary titleholder.

WBA president Gilberto Jesus Mendoza confirmed the change, which closes a title run that stretched across more than four years in one form or another. Davis first held a secondary version of the WBA lightweight belt beginning in December 2019. He was elevated to full champion in early 2024, though his time as an active titleholder at that level proved brief.

The WBA executive committee is now expected to decide whether to authorize a vacant lightweight title fight. The intent is to prevent the division from stalling while Davis’ availability remains uncertain. Under the recess designation, Davis keeps a technical link to the title but no longer occupies the active slot required to anchor the weight class.

Davis is currently being sought by Miami Gardens police as part of an investigation involving multiple law enforcement agencies. He faces charges that include battery, false imprisonment, and attempted kidnapping, stemming from allegations involving his former partner at her workplace on October 27. A related civil lawsuit was filed soon after. The legal process, rather than any boxing timetable, is now determining his short term future.

The fallout has already reshaped his schedule. Davis was removed from a planned crossover bout with Jake Paul that had been scheduled for November in Miami after the event was canceled. He has not fought since a March 1 majority draw with Lamont Roach Jnr in Brooklyn. A proposed rematch last summer never materialized, and a planned August pay per view card was later canceled outright.

If the WBA moves ahead with a vacant title bout, Floyd Schofield and Lucas Bahdi stand as the top two available contenders. Schofield is promoted by Golden Boy, while Bahdi is aligned with Most Valuable Promotions. Both camps have signaled interest in fighting for the belt if it becomes available.

Mendoza has stated that Davis will be allowed to present his case as more information becomes available. For now, though, the WBA has chosen action over waiting. Given how rarely Davis has been present in the ring in recent years, the belt moving on without him feels less abrupt than inevitable.