Gervonta “Tank” Davis makes easy work out of Hugo Ruiz in front of a celebrity-laced audience.
Last night, Gervonta Davis defended his WBA Super Featherweight World Championship by delivering a thrilling and brutal first-round TKO of former world champion Hugo Ruiz.
Leonard Ellerbe and Floyd Mayweather, Jr. have been hard at work, and it now seems to be paying off.
Preparing a new era of dominance for themselves in the absence of Mayweather, boxing’s biggest and most bankable star surely will be no easy task. Last night, they proved yet again they are on the right track.
“I knew it was coming,” Davis said in the post-fight interview when asked about the knockout and his dominant performance. “I wanted to go more rounds, but I knew if I got him out of there early I could fight again sooner. When I touched the jab I saw his arm was in front of his face so if I threw a hook or uppercut, it was right in line.”
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Davis performed before a sellout crowd of 8,048 at Dignity Health Sports Park, formerly the StubHub Center, on SHOWTIME. The 24-year-old is the youngest U.S.-born world titlist in boxing and was headlining for the first time.
Davis (21-0, 20 KOs) recorded his eighth career first-round knockout. Referee Jack Reiss called off the fight with one second remaining in the first round following a devastating right hook that connected cleanly on Ruiz (39-5, 32 KOs).
Reminiscent of Prince Naseem Hamed, Tank entered the ring to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”, replete with dancers and suspenseful smoke. It was signature Mayweather Promotions, which always thrilled the crowd when Floyd would enter with themes as elaborate as circus performers.
The Future Is Now
“Tank” is a true prodigy and the perfect new candidate to carry the Mayweather Promotions flag. Davis, who has now stopped his last 12 opponents, connected on 50 percent of his power punches, keeping pace with the 51 percent power accuracy he logged in his last four fights.
Originally, Davis was supposed to fight Abner Mares in a bid to solidify his name against a recognizable and elite opponent. Mares is from Los Angeles, so the fight would have been on hostile ground.
However, Mares suffered a detached retina in training, the second of his career. Mares, a true warrior and class act, is hopeful that he will be able to fight again.
.@obj out here on fight night for #TheOne reason: @gervontaa pic.twitter.com/lokUQcgMq5
— SHOWTIME Boxing (@ShowtimeBoxing) February 10, 2019
Through Leonard Ellerbe’s work behind the scenes and Mayweather’s star power, Davis is building a nice name for himself. In attendance were stars like Antonio Brown, Odell Beckham Jr., Meek Mill, Drake, Lil Wayne and more, creating an aura around the young star.
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With Mayweather being very gracious and endearing to both his protege and his team, it seems that the kinks have been worked out. With a savvy businessman like Ellerbe behind-the-scenes guiding the ship, Mayweather Promotions looks to become boxing’s new leader.
